Table Of Contents

Other Books by Alison Grey

Acknowledgments

Dedication

Chapter 1

Chapter 2

Chapter 3

Chapter 4

Chapter 5

Chapter 6

Chapter 7

Chapter 8

Chapter 9

Chapter 10

Chapter 11

Chapter 12

Chapter 13

Chapter 14

Chapter 15

Chapter 16

Chapter 17

Chapter 18

Chapter 19

Chapter 20

Chapter 21

Chapter 22

Chapter 23

Chapter 24

Chapter 25

Chapter 26

Chapter 27

Chapter 28

Chapter 29

Chapter 30

Chapter 31

Chapter 32

Chapter 33

Chapter 34

Epilogue

About Alison Grey

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Acknowledgments

A very special thank-you goes to Claire for beta reading. Your dedication is admirable.

Another thank-you goes to Trish for helping me sort through some stumbling blocks. No partner seats. Got it. ;-)

Thank you so much, Sandra a.k.a. Jae, for your countless hours of fighting through my manuscript in different stages and living to talk about it. Even though you didn’t have the time to do the editing, you took the time to help me with the edits and made the final story so much better.

Finally, I want to thank my editor, Amanda. It was a pleasure working with you.

Dedication

For Marlin, the best friend anyone could wish for.

Chapter 1

Dust hit Sherry in the face and made her blink. With one hand, she tried to hold her worn coat together while reaching for her keys with the other. She really needed to repair the zipper on her coat before fall arrived. Maybe Rita Mae could buy her a new one tomorrow at Walmart. She would give her the money back as soon as she could.

The three steps up to her trailer felt as if she were climbing a mountain. Sherry opened the door with a loud squeak. Yawning, she dragged herself through the dark trailer. It was warm and smelled like cleaning agents. Rita Mae had cleaned. What would I do without her?

Even though the trailer was rusty, the toilet barely did its job, and the windows didn’t close as they should, this place was still home. Not everybody could have the white picket fence after all.

She peeled off her coat without turning on the light. Taking a shower to warm up would feel heavenly, but she would have to be quiet so as not to wake Jake.

As if he had heard her thoughts, the bedroom door opened. “Mom?” Jake asked in a sleepy voice, rubbing his eyes.

With a smile, Sherry bent down and wrapped her arms around Jake’s small, warm body. “Hi, honey.”

“Hi, Mom.”

“Go ahead and tuck yourself in.” Now that he was awake anyway, she’d allow herself a quick shower. “I’ll be there in a minute.”

“Mm-hmm. Okay, but hurry.”

Sherry grinned. “Promise.”

Jake let go of her and shuffled to their bed at the end of the trailer.

Sherry’s gaze followed the most precious thing in her world. If only she could give him the life he deserved. But she was already doing everything she could—the same as Rita Mae. She almost raises him without me. A glance out of the window revealed that her best friend was obviously awake because the lights were still on in her trailer. For the past couple of months, while Sherry was at work, Jake had been sleeping alone in their trailer. At six years old, he had gotten too heavy to carry between their places, so they had agreed that Rita Mae would check on him with the monitor while Sherry was at work.

Rita Mae had probably seen her come home, because her stern features gave way to a smile and she waved through the window.

Sherry stepped closer to the glass and waved back. Time for my shower. She dragged herself down the narrow hallway to the shower stall, where she shed her much-too-short waitress uniform and threw it into the laundry basket. Finally, she switched on the light in the bathroom, stepped into the tiny shower stall, and pulled the folding door closed. When the water eventually warmed, a moan escaped her lips. Slowly, her aching muscles started to relax.

“Mom?”

“I’m coming, baby. Just a second.” Sherry shut off the water, opened the door an inch, grabbed her towel from the hook on the wall, and wrapped herself in its folds. Steam smelling like shampoo engulfed the trailer as she stepped onto the bath rug.

In the cool hallway, she put on her pajamas, switched off the shower stall light, and headed to her bedroom.

Jake was tucked in. Grinning as if he had gotten a candy bar, he held up the blanket for her to get in.

Sherry giggled at his antics. Hard to believe that she still had something to giggle about after the day she’d had. Actually, the week. Scratch that, the year.

She switched off the light and slipped under the warm blanket. Relief washed over her as she snuggled up to Jake. “Why are you still awake?” No matter how tired she was, she wanted to talk to Jake for a few minutes to check in before she allowed herself to fall asleep.

“I’ve been waiting for you to come home. I missed you.”

Sherry pulled him even closer. “Me too. But, honey, it’s almost two.” She yawned. “You should be asleep.”

Jake was silent.

“How was your day?” Sherry suppressed another yawn.

“We visited the zoo today.”

“Really?” She hadn’t given Rita Mae money for that. The few bucks she paid her for watching Jake certainly didn’t cover things like that.

“Mm-hmm.” Jake snuggled closer. “We saw elephants and penguins.”

As much as Sherry tried to keep her eyes open, they seemed to have other plans. A smile played on her lips nevertheless. Jake had had a nice day.

“Mom?”

“Mm-hmm?”

“Penguins have no wings.”

She heard the words but couldn’t process them.

“But the man…and then he said…birds.”

“Yeah, honey.” Had that been the right answer? Her mind was fuzzy, and all she could think of was sleep.

“But…swim so good?”

When Jake nudged her, she tore her eyes open. “I’m sorry, what was that?”

“Why can’t penguins fly but swim so good? I mean, they are birds, so…”

Sherry blinked. “Um, their wings are too small to fly. That’s why they use them to be good swimmers.”

“Oh, okay. It’s like Rita Mae says, right? Always make the best of what you have.”

Exhaustion threatened to overwhelm Sherry, but she struggled to stay awake for another moment. Lovingly, she caressed his soft hair and kissed his forehead. “Right. I love you, Jake.”

He gave her a sloppy kiss on the cheek. “I love you too, Mom.”

Holding him close, she finally allowed sleep to claim her.

Chapter 2

The first thing Madison noticed when she woke up was her splitting headache. “God.”

“That’s exactly what you said last night,” a voice beside her whispered in her ear as a naked body pressed against her. “So, does that mean you want more?”

Groaning, Madison pushed the young woman away. “No.” She forced her eyes open. Thank God the shutters were down to protect her from the no doubt glaring sunlight. She fished a bottle of aspirin out of the drawer in the nightstand, popped a couple of pills into her mouth, and washed them down with the remains of a beer sitting there. “Ugh.”

“Can I have some too?” the woman behind her asked.

Madison dragged herself out of bed. “Be my guest.” She stood, tossed her the bottle, and trudged toward the bathroom. Halfway there, she stopped and looked over her shoulder. “Last night was nice. See you around.” Without waiting for a response, she stepped into the bathroom and closed the door. Hopefully, the woman would take the hint and be gone by the time Madison was out of the shower.

When Madison returned, dressed in a fluffy bathrobe, the woman—whatever her name was—had disappeared.

A noise from the living room made her groan. Damn! Shouldn’t have counted my chickens before they’d hatched. As she walked into the living room, she shielded her eyes with one hand against the light streaming in through the half-closed shutters. Finally, she could see the chaos surrounding her in all its glory. Bottles of beer, wine, champagne, and tequila, as well as empty bags of potato chips and pizza boxes, were lying everywhere.

Phil was sprawled out on the couch, and a half-naked blonde lay across the shag rug. She was holding an empty wine bottle between her huge fake boobs, which were barely hidden under a skimpy bikini top.

Clunking and muffled cursing came from the kitchen to her left. The blonde from last night was rummaging through the fridge.

“Searching for something?”

The young woman straightened and smiled at her hesitantly.

She looked young in the daylight. Too young. Damn, I hope she’s legal. The last thing Madison needed was trouble because of—

“I thought I put my eye mask in there.”

“Eye mask?” She squinted over the kitchen counter into the living room at the chaos and then back to blondie. How could anybody mistake the wild party last night for an introduction to a beauty-product party?

The blonde shifted her weight from one leg to the other. “I told you last night. Karen will have my head if she finds out I partied too much again.”

When had she said that? And who was Karen? Last night was foggy to say the least.

“My flight is at six thirty, and I have to get back to the hotel to shower and change.”

“Flight?” Then it came back to her. Blondie was a flight attendant and twenty-one. Madison breathed a sigh of relief.

Her guest tilted her head. “Yes. I want to put the mask on when I’m in the cab on my way back to the hotel. So Karen, the colleague I share a room with, doesn’t see what a wild night I had.” A smile lit up her face. It seemed she had enjoyed their night.

If Madison could have recalled any of it, she probably would have felt the same, but—

There was a knock on the door.

“Shit!” Was it two already? If Grandmother Eileen saw this place now, she’d throw a fit and give Madison another lecture about what a failure she was. “Don’t move.” Madison made a beeline for the door. A glance through the peephole confirmed her worst fear.

Madison opened the door just an inch. “Grandmother, how nice to see you. Um, would you mind waiting in the lobby? I’ll be there in five minutes.”

Grandmother Eileen totally ignored her and pushed the door open. “Nonsense. Why should I wait outside?” She had barely passed Madison when her steps faltered. “What is this? It smells like a bar in here, and why are the shutters halfway down in the middle of the day?” She whirled around to face Madison, who closed the door. “I demand an explanation.”

Madison’s blonde bed bunny chose that moment to show up in the hallway. “Hi there.” Her smile gave way to a frown when she saw the older woman’s stern features. The girl snatched her purse from the hall closet and stepped toward the door.

That gave Madison the chance to stare at the sexy ass under her tight skirt. Not bad. Grandmother Eileen cleared her throat, and Madison swiveled back to her. With her arms crossed in front of her chest and her face set in a disapproving frown, her grandmother stood there like a statue.

“See ya,” blondie mumbled as she left the apartment, her heels clicking in a fast staccato until she disappeared into the elevator.

Madison closed the door and shut her eyes for a moment. She was in deep shit.

Grandmother Eileen climbed over the evidence of last night’s wild party and pressed the button to raise the shutters.

Blinded by the sudden brightness, Madison, Phil, and the girl on the shag rug all groaned.

“Don’t you have any self-respect?” Grandmother Eileen snapped.

“We just had a little party last night, and I—”

“Little?” Her grandmother gestured at the trashed living room. “This is what you call a little party? Your apartment is completely destroyed.”

“You’re exaggerating.”

“You mean understating.” Grandmother Eileen stepped up to the floor-to-ceiling window and faced the city’s skyline. “You are twenty-six years old and have accomplished absolutely nothing.”

Madison rolled her eyes. Not this again. “I graduated from business school like you wanted.”

Grandmother Eileen whirled around. “That was a year ago. And what have you done since then?”

Madison inspected her bare feet. “I got the damn bachelor’s degree you wanted me to get. That should count for something.”

She laughed humorlessly. “A fine degree you have. It took you seven years to complete a four-year degree, and you finished last in your class. Congratulations.” She took a dramatic breath. “Your parents would turn over in their gra—”

Madison’s head snapped up. Her skull was pounding painfully, but she didn’t care. “Don’t you dare mention them to me,” she growled. “What are you complaining about anyway? You were the one who forced me to study that boring crap and then didn’t give me a job after I graduated.”

Grandmother Eileen’s stern gaze roamed over the room.

Madison winced. How had the remains of a pizza ended up on the floor?

“And what position exactly should I have given you? Slut on call?”

Her pulse was racing, and with every heartbeat pain was pumping through her skull. Calm down. Calm down. Her grandmother would leave in a few minutes, and everything would be back to normal.

“You might have a business degree,” Grandmother Eileen said, “but you have no skills except for throwing parties, getting flat-out drunk, and luring women into your bed.” Her face contorted as if she had sucked on a lemon. “Just like your grandfather.” She pointed to the closed door. “Did you even know the name of that woman?”

Madison held her head high and said the first name that came to mind. “Stephanie.”

For a moment, her grandmother regarded her as if trying to decide whether Madison was lying or not. But then she shook her head—either because she realized that Madison had made that name up, or because she’d decided that it didn’t matter. “As if being a lesbian wouldn’t be bad enough, you’re a good-for-nothing spoiled brat on top of that. And I won’t allow you to ruin everything I have worked my whole life for.”

It was best to ignore the swipe about her sexual orientation, but Madison couldn’t ignore Grandmother Eileen’s other words. “What you worked all your life for?” She knew it would have been better to keep her mouth shut, but Madison never did what was good for her. “What exactly have you worked your whole life for? If Grandfather hadn’t picked you up from the streets, you w—”

Grandmother Eileen gasped. “How dare you!”

“You always pretend to be a businesswoman who comes from old money. Be honest just this once. You never worked for anything you have; it was served up to you on a silver platter when you married. And you’re about as old money as—”

“Madison!” Grandmother Eileen shot a look to Phil, who was stirring on the couch, and shag-rug girl, who was still blinking against the beaming sunlight.

She knew she would regret her words later, but she couldn’t help herself. “When it comes to me, you seem to have no problems calling things as they are. So let’s call a spade a spade for a change. Your father was a truck driver, and your mother didn’t even finish high school because she opened her legs for the first guy who paid her any attention! So what’s your problem? In a way, I’m following family tradition.”

“Um, I’d better go.” Phil waved his hand at Grandmother Eileen. “Hello, Mrs. Fielding.” He pulled up the girl from the shag rug. “Get up.”

The girl looked around. “Have you seen my shirt?”

“The dog ate it.” He grabbed his leather jacket from the couch, covered the girl with it, and dragged her to the door.

“Dog?” Shag-rug girl blinked. “I haven’t seen a dog.”

Phil pulled more forcefully. “Who cares? Let’s go.” After opening the entrance door, he shouted back, “I’ll call you!”

“Yeah, see ya.” For a moment Madison stared at the closed door. Hopefully, everybody had left. But with her luck today, Phil had probably slept on the couch because the guest room had already been taken. She turned back to her grandmother.

“How could you say such things in front of your”—Grandmother Eileen wrinkled her nose as if she smelled something foul—“friends?”

“We both know it’s true.” Madison knew the story her grandmother loved to ignore. Just a few weeks into the big city, then sixteen-year-old Eileen had worked as a maid in a hotel, where she had met Madison’s successful grandfather. They had both spoken of love at first sight, but Madison couldn’t imagine that her grandmother was even capable of love. Yes, she played at being a head honcho now, but she’d had nothing to do with the success of Fielding Inc. “Grandfather and Father built the company while you sat at home all this time, drinking your scotch.” Madison stepped closer so that their noses were almost touching. “Every damn day.”

Grandmother Eileen’s eyes were as cold as ice. “That’s enough.”

Madison wasn’t done yet. “It’s ridiculous that I’m not allowed to work in my own company.” Not that she wanted to do any kind of work, but that wasn’t the point here.

“It’s not your company. Your mother had almost nothing when she married your father. And Mortimer barely had a couple of million to his name when he died. The company belonged solely to your grandfather, and now that he’s gone, it belongs to me. You know that. Of course your father would have inherited everything if he hadn’t…”

Madison was actually glad her grandmother didn’t finish the sentence. Feeling raw, she stumbled to the couch and grabbed an open bottle of vodka. She emptied the remains of it in one big gulp. The burning calmed her nerves.

“You’re a drunkard.”

Madison shrugged. “What can I say? You were a good role model.”

Grandmother Eileen sniffed. “You’re a degenerate through and through. Don’t expect to get even a cent from me when your trust fund runs dry. Flinton recently told me that you’re not investing and that—”

“He has no right to talk with you about my financial affairs. That’s none of your business. Besides, he should have given me everything a long time ago instead of this ridiculous allowance every month.”

Grandmother Eileen shrugged. “The arrangement was set up to protect you from yourself. But it’s obvious that nothing can stop you from dragging yourself down into a black hole.” She stalked toward the door.

“You won’t live forever,” Madison blurted.

Madison’s words rooted her grandmother to the spot. Without turning around, she said, “You should know that I’m intending to cut you out of my will.”

Madison sucked in a breath. Was that a miserable attempt at a joke?

Grandmother Eileen sighed like a bad actress in a B-movie. “I’ve tried. Again and again.” Over her shoulder she scowled at Madison. “You refuse to grow up. You never take responsibility for anything or anybody. Not even for yourself. And it seems that will never change. It’s bad enough that you’re blowing through your trust fund. I won’t allow you to do the same with the family fortune.”

“You can’t do that.”

Her grandmother opened the door. “Oh, but I can. You are a disgrace to the Fielding name, and as God is my witness, I did my best to raise you well. But my patience has run out.”

Shit! Why hadn’t she kept her mouth shut? She needed that money. How else could she afford her lifestyle when her trust fund was spent? “Wait!” She followed her grandmother into the hallway.

“What? Haven’t you said enough?”

Now good acting skills were needed. If she just played the remorseful sinner convincingly, everything would work out fine. “I’m sorry. I really have no idea what came over me.”

One of Grandmother Eileen’s brows hiked up, but she kept silent.

She obviously needed to up her game. “Um, tell me what I can do to make it up to you.”

“Grow up,” her grandmother said. “Take responsibility. Show me that you’re worthy of the Fielding name. That or live with the consequences of your actions.” She paraded away, not sparing her another glance.

Two women in wrinkled clothes chose that moment to step out of the guest room. “Morning,” one of them mumbled. “Did we miss breakfast?”

Madison harrumphed, stomped into her bedroom, and slammed her door shut.

“Let me get this straight.” Janice set down her coffee cup on the diner’s plastic table and swiped a lose strand of her long auburn hair behind her ear. “You want to know how you can contest your grandmother’s will before she’s even died?”

“Well, I want the money I deserve, and you are my lawyer, so do your magic.” Even though Madison couldn’t do anything about the will at this point, there had to be a way to make sure she’d get the money eventually, preferably sooner rather than later.

“It’s impossible.”

“There has to be a way.”

“Are you serious?”

The bench under Madison squeaked when she leaned back. The smell of fries, burgers, and coffee invaded her nostrils, while the clinking of dinnerware and the chatter of other customers surrounded her. She let her gaze roam across the diner.

The waitress at the other side of the room was a real cutie. A little bit too skinny and the shadows under her eyes weren’t all that sexy, but otherwise she could be a nice distraction.

“Mad?”

“Huh?” Madison focused on Janice again. “Of course I’m serious. I deserve this inheritance.” She leaned on her elbows. “After the death of my parents, I basically grew up alone. Yeah, I had nannies, but they changed more often than I could count. My grandmother ignored me except for the times she paraded me around at events. I deserve her damn money.”

Janice nodded thoughtfully, opened her briefcase, and slipped out a small stack of paperwork. “Okay. You can’t do anything about her will right now, but what we could try is—”

“Damnit!” a middle-aged fat guy at the next table shouted. “Can’t you be more careful?”

Madison turned.

The cute waitress wiped some spilled coffee off the man’s table. “I’m so sorry,” she said in a hushed tone.

The guy grabbed her waist with meaty hands and pulled her closer. “You can apologize by keeping me company.”

The waitress tried to shake him off, but she had no chance against his physical strength.

“Fred, keep your hands off Sherry,” the guy behind the counter called. “I’ve told you a thousand times to leave my girls alone or you will not be welcome here anymore.”

The guy squeezed the waitress’s behind before holding up his hands. “Okay, okay. Sherry doesn’t mind. Do you, honey?” He winked at the waitress, who ignored him. She cleaned up the remaining spilled coffee and scurried away.

Madison couldn’t take her eyes off the plain waitress. Nothing about her explained Madison’s interest. She was a petite, dark-blonde woman, and her breasts couldn’t have been more than a small B-cup. Okay, she had nice legs and a pretty face, but it was almost haggard. Just like the rest of her.

“Mad? Mad, did you hear that?” Janice sounded as if she had asked her this question more than once.

“I’m sorry, what?” The waitress the burly guy behind the counter had called Sherry was now walking around, filling up the coffee cups.

“Could you get me the sugar, please?” Janice pointed to the table behind Madison on the other side of the aisle.

Madison nodded and stood. On her way to the table, she passed the waitress, and their arms fleetingly brushed against each other.

A tingling sensation spread throughout Madison’s body. What the hell? Two days without sex and you’re going through withdrawal already? Out of the corner of her eye, she saw the fat guy extend this hand again toward Sherry, no doubt to grab her.

A hand stopped him.

It was Madison’s. What the fuck? Since when did she help strangers? It was none of her business.

Sherry and the fat guy both stared at her.

Wow. Sherry’s eyes were anything but plain: they were a blazing green, tired but intense. What the hell is going on here? Madison let go of the man’s hand.

Hastily, Sherry filled the guy’s coffee cup. Without sparing Madison a glance, she murmured, “Thanks,” before rushing away.

“What was that?” Janice asked when Madison placed the sugar in front of her.

Madison regarded the waitress’s retreating back. “No idea.” It was the truth. All this crap with her grandmother had obviously thrown her off track. She stared at the stack of paperwork Janice had placed in front of her. “Um, so if you can’t fight the will, what exactly do you want to do?”

Janice pressed her lips together. “You haven’t listened to one word I said about my plan, have you?”

No sense in denying it. Madison shrugged.

Huffing, Janice leaned forward. “I will get Gerald to take a closer look at the exact ownership of Fielding Inc. and the setup of your trust. He’s a colleague of mine specializing in trust funds, so if there’s something, he’ll find it.”

“Something?”

“If I’m not mistaken, the only person laying eyes on your finances is this weasel Flinton. I wouldn’t be surprised if we find there’s more money than he or your grandmother told you.”

It was better than nothing. “Sounds like a plan. Okay, where should I sign?”

Janice pointed at the stack of paperwork. “This basically allows me to speak on your behalf. Take your time reading the de—”

“Nah, it’ll be fine. So, I guess on the last page?”

Janice nodded. She flipped through the paperwork and tapped on a line. “Here.”

Madison signed and tossed the pen aside. “So now that we’ve taken care of this, want to tell me why we had to meet in this shabby place?” Again, she glanced around and found Sherry within seconds.

The waitress carried four plates at the same time to various tables.

“…and because of that I thought it best to meet here.”

Madison hummed.

Sherry swept an unruly blonde strand of hair behind her ear.

“I think I’ll invite her for a drink,” Madison said, interrupting Janice. “What do you think?”

“Who? The waitress?”

Madison leaned back. “Sure, why not?”

Janice’s brows hiked up to her hairline. “I had no idea that gray mouse was your type.”

True. Usually, she wasn’t interested in pale and exhausted-looking waitresses, but there was something about her.

“Sherry,” a guy with a Mexican accent shouted from the kitchen. “There’s a call for you. It’s Rita Mae. Something’s wrong with Jake.”

The already pale features of the waitress turned stark white as she made a beeline toward the kitchen.

“She needs a real man,” the other waitress—a redhead in her fifties—said to the guy behind the counter. “One who will take care of her and the boy.”

He nodded. “Without that neighbor of hers, she would be totally lost. A woman needs a man; that’s just how it is.”

The redhead patted his shoulder approvingly as if he had spoken the gospel truth. “Let’s hope nothing serious is wrong with the boy.”

The waitress was a single mother? It hit Madison like a baseball bat. “I have the solution.”

Janice stopped to close her briefcase and her eyes crinkled as if Madison had spoken Mandarin. “Solution for what?”

The witch wanted her to grow up and take responsibility? Piece of cake! Grandmother Eileen would get the show of her life. Madison grabbed the contract and ripped it apart.

“What are you doing?”

Sherry rushed out of the kitchen. “Hank, I gotta go. Jake is burning up. I have to take him to the hospital.”

The guy behind the counter growled. “Again?”

Sherry threw her apron on the counter. Without it, her pink mini skirt revealed her fragile build. She fetched a worn coat from a hook on the side of the counter. “I’m really sorry. I’ll make up the hours tomorrow, I promise.”

He raised a finger in warning. “This is the last time. You hear? I get that it’s tough for you, but you’re leaving Betty all on her own.”

“It’s fine, Hank.” The other waitress patted his burly arm.

“I’ll make it up to you. Really,” Sherry called, already halfway out the door. “The bus will be here any moment. If I hurry, I might catch it.”

If she couldn’t talk to the waitress now, she had to come back later. Hell no! Madison jumped up. “Be right back.” She ran after Sherry and caught up with her in the parking lot. “Wait!”

Sherry jerked to a stop and whirled around. Fear shone in her eyes but made way for something that looked like recognition. A hesitant smile formed on her lips. “Thank you so much for your help earlier.” She peered at the end of the parking lot. “I don’t want to be rude, but I have to hurry to catch my bus.”

“I can drive you.”

The waitress blinked. “What?”

“I, um, heard that you have to get home quickly, and I have a car. So I could drive you.”

Sherry tilted her head, her expression guarded. “Why would you do that?”

Out of the corner of her eye, Madison saw the bus approaching. If she kept Sherry occupied long enough, she’d miss it and would have to accept her offer. She gave the waitress her best flirty smile. “Because I’m nice.”

Just when the bus stopped, Sherry turned and ran toward it without sparing Madison a second glance.

Madison ran after her but wasn’t fast enough. “Damn!”

Sherry stepped through the doors, and the bus pulled away.

Madison bent forward, gasping for breath. She worked out multiple times a week and had fun in bed just as much but had been outrun by a pallid waitress. Madison had to laugh.

“What the hell was that?” Janice asked when she reached Madison. Along with her briefcase, she also held Madison’s jacket.

Madison still struggled to get her breathing under control. “I have the perfect solution to how to get back into my grandmother’s will.” She grinned. “It’s brilliant.”

“And what does that have to do with the waitress?”

“Everything.” Madison winked at her long-time friend. “Let’s go back inside.”

“I paid already.”

“Doesn’t matter. There’s something I gotta do in there.”

“Where?” She pointed at the diner. “There?”

“Yup.”

“And what’s that exactly?”

“Join me and you’ll see.”

Chapter 3

Sherry burst breathlessly into the trailer. “How is he?”

Rita Mae looked up from where she sat at the table. Her features were somber. “I’m sorry I called.”

“No problem.” Sherry pulled the door closed and peeled off her coat. “How’s his fever doing?”

“It’s actually higher than when I called. And his throat is full again of those white thingies. Just like last time.”

Tears threatened to fall, but Sherry wouldn’t allow it. Instead she straightened like a soldier about to march into battle. Jake shouldn’t see how worried she was. Determined, she made her way to the bedroom and slid open the folding door.

Rita Mae had darkened the room, but Jake’s weak form was still visible under the blanket.

“Mom?” Jake’s voice was hoarse.

“Hi, honey.” She sat on the edge of the bed and engulfed him in a tight hug. His pajamas were drenched in sweat, and his skin felt hot. “God, you’re soaked.”

“I had to change my clothes two times already. Please, Mom, not again. I’m so tired.”

Rita Mae appeared in the threshold. “There’s only one clean pair of pajamas left. The others are in the laundry.”

“Mom, am I so sick that Hank sent you home?”

Sherry’s eyes burned. “I was working a half shift today.” She let go of Jake. “Be right back.”

Jake barely nodded and closed his eyes.

He’s exhausted. We need to see a doctor. After she had pulled the door closed, she turned to Rita Mae. “Do you think Andy will lend me his car?”

“I wouldn’t go over to ask if I were you. He and Chloe were fighting earlier.”

Sherry swallowed. “Is he drunk?”

“I’m afraid so. Chloe kicked him out after he tried to beat her up. Same old story. They woke Jake up with all the ruckus.”

Dammit! Andy wasn’t just her neighbor, but also her landlord and the only one who had a car in this run-down part of the trailer park. But he had lent her the car in the past, and it wasn’t as if she really had a choice. “Do you know where he is?”

“Guess he’s with Steve. But I bet both are drunk as skunks.”

Sherry slid onto the bench at the table. “What am I supposed to do? There’s not enough money for a cab, and in his condition, I can’t walk with him the two miles to the bus stop.” If only she had accepted the offer of that woman at the parking lot. Maybe she could have taken Jake to the hospital.

Sherry sighed. I should have thought about that earlier. Now was not the time to think about what could have been. She took a deep breath to steel her resolve. “If you don’t have a better idea, I’ll head over.”

“I could go,” Rita Mae said, but they both knew that it wasn’t really an option.

“No.” She patted Rita Mae’s shoulder. “I appreciate it, but I have to do it. He hates your guts as it is. I don’t want him to kick you out.” Andy was a racist and had threatened to evict Rita Mae more than once because of the color of her skin. But Rita Mae always paid on time and kept her place immaculately clean, which was the exception rather than the rule around here, so Andy let her be.

“Sherry…”

“There’s no other way.” She slipped into her coat—more to cover herself than because the warm September air required it—and opened the door before her resolve could shatter.

Her legs were shaking when she marched toward Steve’s trailer. When she made it to the front of the stairs, her steps faltered. “Do it,” she whispered. Hesitantly, she raised her fist and knocked.

“Get lost, Chloe!”

Sherry swallowed against her suddenly dry throat. “It’s not Chloe. It’s me, Sherry.”

The door was pushed open, and Sherry stumbled back to avoid getting hit by it.

Andy squinted past her, probably to make sure that his wife wasn’t hiding behind her. Then he took a deep drag of his cigarette stump and threw it somewhere behind Sherry. Smoke poured out between his yellow teeth and from his nose. “Hey, Sherry. Wanna join our little party?” He opened the door a little more.

“Shut the damn door,” Steve barked from inside. “The wind is blowing the shit off the table. Come on in, Sherry.”

“No thanks, Steve. I…” She fought the urge to shout out her frustration. “Andy, could I borrow your car? Jake is sick and—”

“In or out!” Steve yelled. “Now!”

“Fuck off and give me a sec,” Andy called over his shoulder. “It’s my trailer you’re sitting in, so shut the fuck up!”

“’s cool,” Steve grumbled. “I just thought you might wanna have another drag. And with all this wind going on in here…”

Andy clumsily stepped out and closed the door.

Sherry took another step back so she wouldn’t collide with him.

“My car? We could drive around if ya want.”

His stale breath almost made Sherry gag.

“Andy, Jake is really sick. I need to take him to the hospital.” Sherry folded her arms in front of her chest when Andy kept staring at her breasts.

Andy’s gaze jerked to Sherry’s face. “Jake’s sick? I can drive you.”

“That’s really nice of you, but you’ve been drinking.”

“D’you think I can’t drive?” He moved closer, but Sherry sidestepped him again.

She had to be careful what she said, or he wouldn’t lend her the car. “I don’t want to interrupt you or Steve.” She forced a smile. “Of course I will fill up the tank to compensate for any gas I use.”

“Will ya join me later?”

“Huh?”

Andy leaned against Steve’s camper, obviously not caring about the dark stains on it. “We really would be good together, ya know?”

She had feared that he would hit on her again. Hopefully, he would still lend her the car when she turned him down. After all, she’d told him repeatedly that she wasn’t interested. “That’s, um, nice of you to say, but I really have no time for this. And Chloe—”

“She’s a fucking slut! Forget her.” He winked at her. “I already have.”

To try to talk reason into him was going to be useless. “Andy, my boy is really sick. Will you give me the keys or not?”

He inspected the gravel yard before focusing on her once more. “For a kiss, you get ’em.”

Oh, God! The thought of kissing him brought bile to the back of her throat. She swallowed. “Please give me the keys.”

“Kiss first.”

“Please, Andy.”

“Totally up to you,” he said in a singsong voice as if this were all a big game.

While she peeked over her shoulder to her trailer, one thought kept repeating itself: Jake needs me.

Andy was already bending forward to seek his reward, but Sherry held him back by laying her trembling hand on his filthy shirt. “First give me the keys.”

Andy, who had pursed his lips, frowned. “Don’t trust me, huh?”

She wanted to smile, but her lips probably formed a pained expression at best. She just wanted to cry.

He hesitated, but then he rolled his eyes and dug the keys out of his greasy pants. “Here.”

Sherry gripped the keys as if her life depended on it. Who knew how sick Jake really was this time? It could be that his life depended on these damn keys.

With any luck, it would be over soon. When his face came closer, the stench of cigarettes, cheap booze, and the weed he and Steve smoked threatened to make her gag.

Andy’s rough lips and scruff were on her before she could take another breath. His slimy tongue stabbed inside her mouth while one of his hands grabbed her butt hard.

He pulled her closer and moaned.

“Let go of her, you brute,” Rita Mae shouted.

Sherry lurched away from him and held on to the trailer to stay upright. Her stomach roiled. But if she retched, it would make Andy furious for sure, and she couldn’t risk him taking the keys away from her. She took a deep breath, then another.

Rita Mae’s salt-and-pepper hair flew in the wind. She stood on Sherry’s doorstep like an overweight avenging angel.

“Damn, bitch, we’re busy. Can’t you see that?”

Sherry took a deep breath. Then another one. She wouldn’t vomit, she wouldn’t vomit, she wouldn’t—

“So, where were we?”

Sherry stumbled backward. “Thanks for the keys,” she croaked, and tried to walk back to her trailer.

Andy grabbed her arm. “Not so fast.”

“You said one kiss.”

“Doesn’t count. That bitch ruined it.”

“Andy, please. My boy needs to go to the hospital.”

Andy stared at her with his cold eyes. Finally, he nodded. “You can pay me later.” His yellow teeth became visible when he grinned. “But try better next time. You kiss like a dead fish.” He laughed at his own joke and started coughing. Then he took a rattling breath and repeated, “That’s it. Like a dead fish.”

Sherry pulled away and ran toward her trailer as fast as her shaky legs would allow. On her way, she spat a few times on the dusty underground beneath her to get rid of the horrible taste in her mouth. “Thank you so much.” She wrapped her arms around Rita Mae’s comforting form, and when they let go, she held up the keys like a trophy.

“Would you like me to come with you?” Rita Mae followed her inside the trailer.

“No. When we’re back, he’ll probably need fresh pajamas. Could you ask Sue if she’ll let you use her dryer? Tell her I’ll give her the money later.” This month was turning out to be a financial disaster. Nothing new there.

“Okay.”

“We gotta go,” Sherry said. “Who knows how long we’ll have to wait this time? And my shift at the market starts tomorrow at seven.”

“You work too much.”

A hysterical laugh threatened to bubble out of her. “My bank account wouldn’t agree.” Sherry took a deep breath and slid open the folding door to the bedroom.

“You can’t be serious,” Janice blurted.

“Why not?” Madison shoved another forkful of apple pie into her mouth. “Mm-hmm.” After she swallowed, she said, “It tastes really good. You sure you don’t wanna try?”

“Very sure.”

“Your loss. Anyway, everybody would get what they want.”

“That’s bullshit.”

Madison paused with her fork in midair. She wasn’t sure what surprised her more: Janice’s choice of words or that she didn’t agree with her. She decided to focus on the latter. “What’s wrong with my plan?”

Janice looked at her as if she were trying to explain to a child why it wasn’t proper to scratch your butt in public. “I don’t know where to start.”

“At the beginning?”

“Fine.” Janice pushed her half-empty coffee cup to the side. “Nobody will believe it. I mean, you’ve done a lot of crazy things in the past, but this—”

Madison let her fork clatter onto her plate. “There’s nothing crazy about it. I’ll pay this waitress a nice sum of money to play my girlfriend. You can buy anybody for the right price.”

“Let’s pretend for a ridiculous moment that you’ll be able to talk her into going along with your silly plan. The idea that you of all people could play a loving partner and stepmother is absurd. You wouldn’t make it through even one week without parties and booty calls.”

“You’re exaggerating.” Madison pointed her fork at Janice. “Besides, I don’t think Grandmother Eileen will live much longer. How old is she? A hundred and fifty?” She chuckled at her own joke. “And how hard can it be to play a boring family person?” Just thinking about the role she would play with Sherry brought a smile to her face. Maybe playing the waitress’s partner would be anything but boring. Sherry wouldn’t be the first straight woman she had enticed into her bed.

She looked Janice directly in the eye to convey that she was serious. “There’s a lot of money on the line here. I can make it happen. Trust me.”

“I would bet a year’s salary that you’ll fail.”

“Sure, why not?”

“Stop making fun of me. Even if the waitress does accept your offer and you stop being, well, you, how will you get a job and—”

“Wait! I didn’t say anything about getting a job.”

Again, Janice looked at her as if she were a little child. “How are you planning to convince your grandmother you’re taking responsibility without getting a job? Believe it or not, responsible people have responsibilities. You’ll never be believable as a housewife or stay-at-home mom, so that means you need a job. Don’t tell me you didn’t think of that in your oh-so-fantastic plan.”

The apple pie sat like lead in her belly. It wasn’t that she was lazy by any means—not really. But working? She’d never had to work and never wanted to either. “So, um, you think a job would be a must to make it believable?”

“Your question alone proves that you have no chance of convincing your grandmother.”

Anger bubbled up deep inside of her. She would prove Janice wrong. At any cost. “What do you make in a year?”

“Why?”

“Come on. How much?”

“Seventy plus bonuses. So about a hundred. Why?”

“What? That’s all?”

Janice inspected her hands. “It’s just my third year after graduation. In smaller firms, I would make even less.”

“Your father is a partner. Shouldn’t he pay you more?”

“He said I have to make it on my own. I was lucky he got me a job at his firm at all.” Janice starred into her half-empty coffee cup.

They had known each other since their last year of high school. It was the longest friendship she had ever had with anybody. Besides Danielle. Madison shook her head to get rid of the memory and focused on Janice instead. They had never slept together. Maybe that was the reason why their close friendship had lasted so many years. Close friendship? Really? In this moment, she had no idea what Janice might be thinking. It doesn’t matter what she thinks. Focus! Madison extended her hand. “I bet you one hundred thousand dollars that not only will I go through with it, but I will also get what I want in the end.”

Janice’s eyes widened in an almost comical way. “Are you out of your mind?”

“Why? Afraid to lose?”

“Ha. Never.” Janice hesitated but then grabbed Madison’s hand. “Ten. I bet you ten thousand dollars that something will go wrong. Either you don’t get the waitress to do it, you mess up, or your grandmother won’t fall for it.”

“Deal.” Madison pumped Janice’s hand wildly. After she let go, she ate the rest of her pie. A giggle threatened to escape her lips. Yes, this would be a piece of cake or, in this instance, perhaps a piece of pie. She stood up.

“Where are you going?”

“Where do you think? I have to ask where I can find my better half.” Madison strolled to the counter.

Less than five minutes later, Janice couldn’t stop her snickering while they walked across the parking lot. She stopped abruptly and tapped one finger against her lips.

“What?” Madison growled.

“Oh, I was just thinking about what to do with my ten thousand dollars when you lose this bet.”

Madison clenched her fists. Everybody could be bought. So why hadn’t the stupid guy at the diner told her where to find Sherry? Who cares? She wouldn’t give up so fast. “Hold your horses. The game has barely started.”

“If you say so.”

Without giving her a second glance, Madison stomped toward her BMW convertible. She pressed the key fob, tore open the door, climbed in, and pulled the door closed with more force than necessary. As soon as the engine was running, she sped from the parking lot as fast as the car would allow, her hair flying in the breeze.

Think! Where can I find her? Her son was sick. Yes! That’s it. Sherry would take him to a nearby hospital. It was at least worth a try.

Chapter 4

Sherry pulled Jake’s overheated body closer into her embrace and looked up at the clock situated over the waiting room’s entrance. It was just after eight. They had been at the hospital for almost two hours.

A toddler screamed on the other side of the room and a few adults coughed. One loudly complaining drunkard was dragged outside by two security guards while various phones rang behind the sliding doors. The place was packed and smelled of old sweat, stale cigarette smoke, and vomit. She silently prayed that Jake wouldn’t catch anything further on top of his current infection. Not that Sherry could afford to be sick either. Lying sick in bed didn’t pay the bills.

Sherry’s belly grumbled as if agreeing. Or maybe it was simply hunger. She hadn’t eaten since… It took her a moment to realize that she hadn’t eaten since having a quick breakfast this morning.

Maybe, if they got seen shortly, they wouldn’t have to spend half the night here, like last time. She could then have a bite to eat back at home and get at least a couple hours of sleep before tomorrow’s workday.

Sherry caressed Jake’s sweat-drenched forehead. Despite this being a loud, stuffy place, Jake was sleeping. But his heart was beating frantically. God, he had to be fine.

“Finally!”

Sherry flinched and turned to see the strange woman, who had helped her with Fred earlier and had offered to drive her home, standing there staring at her with huge eyes.

Sherry stared back. The woman’s clothes looked expensive and her long, dark brown hair was windblown but seemed to have seen a stylist recently. Everything about her screamed money, so what was she doing in this waiting room? Surely she could afford much better treatment. Not that she appeared to be sick.

The woman stepped up to her. “This is the third hospital I’ve driven to.” She smiled. “At least you chose well with this one. My family has donated a lot to this one over the years.”

Sherry blinked. “Are you talking to me?”

Jake shifted in her arms, and she held him even tighter. “Is it our turn?” he mumbled.

“No, baby. Go back to sleep.”

He snuggled his face to her shoulder and nodded off again.

The strange woman held a fifty-dollar bill to the old guy sitting on the chair next to Sherry. “I have a feeling you want to sit somewhere else.”

The pale man ogled the bill, then snatched it out of the woman’s hand and jumped up with an agility that belied his fragile posture.

The woman sat down beside Sherry. “If you hadn’t run away from me earlier, your son would feel much better already.”

Was this woman mad? Sherry spun away. “Leave me alone.”

“I can’t believe this,” the mad woman said under her breath. In a hushed voice, she added, “Listen, I have a business proposal to make. If you agree, your son will get the best medical treatment there is.”

Mad, nuts, a total lunatic. That’s what this woman was. “I don’t know you and have nothing to talk to you about.” Sherry eyed the entrance to the waiting room. The security guards were still dealing with the drunkard, and her fellow waiting people gave no indication of wanting to help. Instead, they leaned back to watch the interesting distraction.

The woman extended her hand. “I’m Madison Fielding.”

“I am not interested in doing any business with you. Now leave us alone. Please.”

Ms. Fielding—if that was her real name—left the waiting room cursing under her breath.

Obviously, Sherry had found the right words. She relaxed. Rita Mae would never believe this.

Not even five minutes later, the woman was back. This time with a nurse in tow. “I’m Abigail Tayler. I want to apologize for keeping you waiting so long.” She half-turned to Ms. Fielding. “If we had known—”

Ms. Fielding waved her off.

Sherry glanced between the nurse and Ms. Fielding. What are you waiting for? Someone wants to help Jake. The rest doesn’t matter.

She stood. Her stomach roiled and stars appeared in her line of sight. It wasn’t the first time this had happened, so she knew what to do; she squeezed her eyes shut and waited. When she opened her eyes again, both women looked at her strangely.

She took a deep breath. “I’m Sherry Miller. This is my son, Jake. He’s got a high fever.”

“I see,” the nurse said. “Please follow me.”

Doing just that, she passed Ms. Fielding, who was grinning, making her look even more of a lunatic than when she had arrived.

“Is it our turn?” Jake croaked.

“Yeah, honey.” Looking over her shoulder, she realized that Ms. Fielding was following them. Her instincts screamed at her to say something to the nurse, but what if she sent them back to the waiting room then? No, she couldn’t risk that.

The nurse tapped her tablet several times. “You said your son’s name is Jake, right, Ms. Miller?”

“Yeah.”

Apparently, the nurse had found Jake’s information, because she nodded. “Please come this way.”

They walked past the treatment area, where each bed and treatment table were sectioned off by curtains, and entered a separate room that contained just one treatment table. It seemed to be equipped for much severe medical emergencies. Sherry had never been in the area toward the back of the ER. Probably for a good reason. Being treated here had to cost a fortune. Money that Medicaid certainly wouldn’t cover and that she couldn’t afford.

Carefully, she lowered Jake onto the treatment table. For a moment, he opened his blood-shot eyes before squeezing them shut once more.

Nurse Tayler slipped a thermometer into Jake’s ear and entered the result in the tablet. “The doctor will be with you shortly.” She hadn’t even left the room when the door was opened. A man in scrubs and a lab coat grabbed a tablet from a holder at his hip and asked for the patient’s name.

While he sorted through the files, the nurse asked, “Do you need me for anything?”

“No, thank you, Abby.”

After the nurse had left the room, the doctor stepped up to the treatment table. “Good evening, Ms. Miller. Ms. Fielding.”

He knew the mad woman?

Ms. Fielding barely paid him any attention. “Good evening.”

He faced Sherry. “I’m Doctor Bennet.”

“Nice to meet you, sir.”

The doctor tilted his head slightly as if wondering about her reply. Then he smiled at Jake, who had opened his eyes again and was struggling to sit up.

Sherry helped him.

“Hello, Jake,” Doctor Bennet said.

Jake frowned. He probably thought the same as Sherry. Doctors usually rushed in, checked his throat and ears, listened to his chest, and then wrote up a prescription without giving any indication they knew he had a name.

“Hello,” Jake squeaked.

The doctor took Jake’s hand in his. “It’s very nice to meet you.” Slowly, he let go. “Want to tell me what’s bothering you?”

“I…” Jake cleared his throat. But when he spoke, his voice was still hoarse. “My throat is hurting.”

“Ah, that doesn’t sound so good. And you’ve also got quite a fever.” The doctor patted Jake’s shoulder. “But I’m sure we can make it better.” He got a tongue depressor out of a cabinet. “Would you open your mouth, please? As far as you can. And please say ‘ah.’”

“Ahhh!”

Doctor Bennet inserted the depressor and used a flashlight to inspect Jake’s throat. “Great job, Jake.”

Sherry looked over to Ms. Fielding, who was standing much too close for her liking and was beaming at her. Instinctively, Sherry took a step away.

“Thank you, Jake.” The doctor turned to Sherry. “I want to inspect him more thoroughly, but as far as I can tell, this seems like a clear case of tonsillitis.”

Sherry nodded. “I was afraid you’d say that. He gets it every few months. But the antibiotics don’t seem to work anymore.”

“Have you ever been advised to get Jake’s tonsils removed?”

“Well, sure. He’s on the waiting list, but they told us it would be a while until it’s his turn.” Sherry rubbed her temple. If she wasn’t such a loser in life, Jake wouldn’t have to suffer so much.

Ms. Fielding rolled her eyes at the doctor. “Ignore her.” To Sherry, she said, “Honey, I told you already that I’m gonna pay for this. As long as our little one is taken care of.” Ms. Fielding’s gaze drilled into her as if she wanted to burn a hole into Sherry’s head.

Honey? Our little one?

Ms. Fielding raised her arm as if she wanted to lay it over Sherry’s shoulder but seemed to think better of it because she let it fall to her side like a log.

Was this supposed to be a bad joke? If she refused to join in, would this mean that Jake wouldn’t be taken care of? God, I wish I knew what’s going on.

Before Sherry could decide what to do, Doctor Bennet asked, “Does Jake suffer from any serious sicknesses or allergies we should know about?”

Sherry shook her head. “His tonsils become infected every now and then, and he gets a cold easily, but that’s it. No allergies I know of.”

“Has his heart been checked out in the past?”

“His heart?” Her own started beating faster. “No, why?”

Dr. Bennet gave her a smile that probably was supposed to calm her down but failed miserably. “Just a precaution. I would like to keep Jake here to run some tests. And if you agree, we would like to give him an antibiotic to help reduce the infection. As soon as the infection is down, I’d like to get his tonsils removed for good.”

This sounded like a dream. But it was just that: a dream. She would never be able to afford such treatment.

Jake tried to smile at her, but his face contorted into a painful grimace instead.

As much as she wished she could agree, Sherry had no idea what this woman wanted her to do in exchange. And judging from Ms. Fielding’s arrogant smile, she had a feeling she didn’t want to find out.

She took a deep breath. “I think I can’t do th—”

“Honey, could I talk to you for a second?” Ms. Fielding asked. “Outside,” she hissed.

Why not? It couldn’t hurt to find out what this was all about. After all, this wasn’t about her; this was about Jake. “Okay.”

Ms. Fielding addressed the doctor. “Go ahead. We’ll be right back.”

The doctor nodded.

Ms. Fielding grabbed Sherry’s arm and pulled her toward the door.

Sherry broke free of her grip and hurried back to Jake. She took his chin between thumb and forefinger. “I’ll be just outside.”

“Okay, Mom,” Jake croaked out.

It took all her will to let go of him, kiss his forehead, and follow Ms. Fielding out of the room.

When both were standing in the hall and Ms. Fielding had closed the door, Sherry folded her arms in front of her chest. She wasn’t dumb. What this woman offered was sure to have its price. “What do you want for helping Jake?”

Ms. Fielding smiled. It seemed fake like the smile people in showbiz often sported. “I’ve got a job for you. A rather unusual job, but it’s well paid.”

“Is it illegal?” She wouldn’t work as a hooker or drug courier. Sherry would do almost anything for Jake, but she would never give him a reason to be ashamed of his mother.

“No, nothing illegal.”

Sherry regarded the woman in front of her. She wasn’t wearing makeup, and she didn’t need any to be attractive. Her unusually straight posture and her arrogant expression made her stand out in a crowd. What could a woman like her want from someone like Sherry?

As if she’d read her mind, Ms. Fielding said, “I want to hire you to play my girlfriend.”

Huh?

Ms. Fielding shifted her weight. “By girlfriend, I mean fake partner.”

“What?”

Some people walking by glanced over. Had she spoken too loudly?

“I’m gay.”

Somewhere during this weird conversation, Ms. Fielding had lost her. It had to be the lack of sleep or her empty stomach, the latter choosing that moment to protest once more. Sherry held her belly, but it didn’t help to silence it.

Ignoring the noise, Ms. Fielding said, “As part of the deal, you’ll get to live in a nice place, have the best medical treatment money can buy, and while you work for me, I’ll pay you…let’s say two thousand dollars a week.”

This had to be a joke. A really bad one. “Why do you need someone to pretend to be your girlfriend?” If Ms. Fielding was serious—and as much as she tried to, she couldn’t quite believe that—why did she want Sherry for the job?

Ms. Fielding was obviously rich and good-looking. It couldn’t be that hard to find somebody better suited for this job.

Again, Ms. Fielding answered the question Sherry hadn’t voiced. “I don’t want a relationship. But it’s very important for me that…” She paused until a nurse had passed them. Stepping closer, she continued more quietly, “There is somebody in my family who has to believe that I’m in a bor…in a solid relationship. This person has to think I have a family.” At the last word, she grimaced as if she had bitten on a lemon.

“I don’t understand.”

“There’s nothing to understand. You pretend to be my girlfriend and tell everybody what a great partner I am. End of story.”

“But why me?”

“Why not?”

Was this woman trying to be difficult, or was that her normal state? “Why me?” she asked again.

Ms. Fielding shrugged. “I saw you at the diner.”

“That’s it? You saw me and decided to ask me of all people?”

“Yup.” She leaned casually against the wall. “So?”

Was she dreaming? If so, the jury was still out as to whether it was a good dream or a bad one. But if Ms. Fielding was serious about her offer, Jake would be taken care of. “I still don’t get it. You want me to—?”

The door opened, and the doctor came out. “That’s it for now. Aside from the tonsillitis, Jake seems to be fine. I gave him something for the pain and the fever. The nurse will come along in a moment so that you can sign some paperwork and get him into his room.”

“Can I stay with him?”

“Of course,” Doctor Bennet said. “The room should have a pull-out couch. You can use that, or we can bring in a second bed. Whatever you prefer.”

Her mouth fell open. Never in a thousand years would she have thought something like this was possible for someone like her. She took Doctor Bennet’s hand. “Thank you, Doctor. Thank you so much.”

“You’re welcome.” He withdrew his hand, gave Ms. Fielding a nod, and walked up to Nurse Tayler, who had just rounded the corner. After a short exchange, she came toward them.

Sherry turned to Ms. Fielding. “About your offer—”

“Time to bring Jake to his room, it seems,” Nurse Tayler said with a smile.

When the nurse went to see to Jake, Ms. Fielding leaned over to Sherry. “Not now.” While they stepped into the treatment room, Ms. Fielding put one hand on the small of Sherry’s back.

Sherry flinched but otherwise ignored the invasive touch. For now.

Jake sat with hanging shoulders on the treatment table, but his lips formed a weak smile. “The doctor was very nice.”

Sherry’s eyes burned. It was all too much. The worry about Jake, Ms. Fielding’s crazy offer, the amazing treatment Jake was getting… She swallowed against the lump in her throat. She never had and never would cry in front of him. “That’s nice, baby.” She was about to pick him up when the nurse touched her arm. “I have a wheelchair here, ma’am.”

“Oh.” Sherry let go of Jake, caressed his flushed cheek, and stepped back.

Nurse Tayler helped Jake into the wheelchair before pushing him out of the room. The fact that he didn’t complain showed how exhausted he was.

Sherry and Ms. Fielding fell into step behind Nurse Tayler. It was surreal. This stranger was walking with them as if she were part of their family. And that’s exactly what she wants everybody to believe. The thought made her queasy. It was just wrong. “What if I don’t do it?” she whispered.

“Not here, dammit. We can talk about it in a second. When we’re alone.”

Sherry had no choice but to nod.

When the elevator opened, the smell of disinfectant and something else she couldn’t identify hit Madison like a punch in the face. Memories of the last time she’d been in this hospital, on a floor exactly like this one, crashed over her like a wave. The bleeping of machines, the pale face of her mother, distorted in pain, and her clammy hand holding Madison’s much smaller one.

“Ms. Fielding?”

The nurse’s voice pulled Madison back to the here and now. Everybody but her had left the elevator.

Two big steps and she stood in the hall before the doors could close.

“There we are.” The nurse entered a room and switched the light on.

Sherry’s big eyes seemed to pop out of her head. “Th…that is Jake’s room?”

“Um, yes, ma’am.”

“What… How much does it cost?”

“Honey, I told you already that I’ll pay for it.” What was her problem? To the nurse, Madison said, “Do you need my information for the bill?”

“If you would be so kind. You can do it on your way out at the nursing station. We will pass the information to administration for you.”

Madison nodded. Actually, it would be ridiculous if they charged her anything at all considering how much her family had donated to this hospital over the decades.

Sherry helped the boy into bed. Afterward, she pulled off his shoes and placed them beside the nightstand. “I haven’t brought his pajamas. Usually, they send us home.”

Jeez, would this never end? Madison spun toward the nurse. “Do you have something for him to wear?”

“I could bring him a hospital gown.”

“Thank you,” Sherry said. “I’ll head home in a minute. It’ll do for the moment.”

“Mom, I don’t wanna wear a gown. Only girls wear gowns.”

It seemed that the boy was feeling better, because until now, he hadn’t said a thing, for which Madison was grateful. She would probably get along with him just fine if his complaining now was an exception.

“Baby, it’s only until I’m back with your pajamas. Want me to help you change?”

“I can do that,” the nurse said.

“Mom,” the boy whined. “I’m old enough. I can do it by myself.”

His hanging shoulders, scratchy voice, and glassy eyes said something else.

Madison bit her lip so she wouldn’t tell him to shut up as she had been told as a kid. Okay, her grandmother had never actually said to shut up. Instead, she had always told her to be quiet so that nobody would know how dumb she was.

Sherry stroked some hair out of her son’s face. “Of course you can do it alone. But…you know”—she bent closer to him—“Nurse Tayler might get in trouble if she doesn’t help you. It’s her job after all.”

The boy squinted between his mother and the smiling nurse.

“You don’t want that, do you?” Sherry asked.

The boy shook his head. “No, Mom.”

Sherry smiled and gave him a kiss on the forehead.

Huh. Madison hadn’t seen that coming.

“Mom?”

“Yeah, baby?”

The boy pulled her closer and pointed in Madison’s direction. “Who’s that woman?”

Sherry whispered something into his ear that made him nod.

Madison looked at her watch. It was almost nine. She should have been on her way to the club already to meet the guys, not standing around like a fool and letting a little boy call her “that woman.” If they didn’t speed things up, she wouldn’t arrive at the club before the guys were already sauced.

“Will you be fine here for a while?” Sherry asked her son. “I’ll drive back home to get us some clothes for the night.”

The kid seemed exhausted from the entire ruckus and just nodded.

Sherry had turned away when the boy said, “Can I have my Spiderman pajamas?”

“We’ll see.”

“The main entrance is closed for visitors,” the nurse said. “I’ll tell the guys on security to expect you.”

“Thank you,” Sherry said. “That’s very kind of you. I’ll hurry up.”

The nurse sent her a friendly smile and took a blood pressure cuff from a shelf to wrap it around the boy’s arm.

“I’ll be right back.” Sherry caressed her son’s sweaty bangs and straightened toward Madison. “Okay, let’s talk outside.”

Sherry had barely closed the door when she whirled around, coming face to face with Ms. Fielding. “What happens to Jake if I don’t agree to help you?”

With one hand casually placed in her pants pocket, Ms. Fielding leaned against the wall. Then, as if to display how relaxed she was, she folded one foot over the other. “Why not ask me what happens if you agree? Money wouldn’t be an issue for you anymore and the boy would be taken care of.”

She couldn’t imagine such a scenario if she tried. And the fact that Ms. Fielding hadn’t answered her question made her hackles rise.

“As you already know, I don’t have much money, Ms. Fielding. But I’m an upright and honest person. It’ll take a while, but I’ll pay you back.”

Ms. Fielding pushed away from the wall and stepped up to her. Close—much too close for Sherry’s liking—she paused and studied Sherry with an expressionless face. Abruptly, she looked away.

Goose bumps ran down her spine, the same way it had earlier with Andy. Had that really been just a few hours ago?

“You’ve got no idea what the medical bill will be. Even if you take him with you right now, it would probably take you years to pay me back based on your tiny waitress paycheck.” With a short laugh bare of any humor, Ms. Fielding added, “But you can go back to the waiting room when his fever rises again. Maybe you’d see a newbie doctor by dawn if you’re lucky.”

The room started spinning. Sherry raised a hand to hold on to something. Anything. But there was nothing.

She lost her equilibrium and felt her legs crumbling.

But she didn’t fall.

Ms. Fielding grabbed her waist with both hands, and for a split second, Sherry could have sworn she saw genuine worry in her eyes, but it was gone before she could be sure.

Sherry held on to the wall. “You can let go. I’m fine. Thanks.”

Ms. Fielding took a step back. “What’s wrong? Are you diabetic?”

“No. No, but I could use some sugar, I guess.”

“What’s that supposed to mean?”

“Nothing.”

Ms. Fielding kept staring at her.

“I just haven’t eaten in a while is all.”

“What is in a while?”

“Does it matter?”

“It does if we’re supposed to know things about each other. If you collapse every two hours if you don’t eat, I—”

“This morning around half past six, before I went to work.”

Ms. Fielding furrowed her brow. “Oh, c’mon, you’ve got to be kidding?”

Slowly, so as not to feel dizzy again, Sherry shook her head.

“Don’t tell me the diner opens up that early.”

“No. I also work at a grocery store. My shift at the diner starts later.”

The wrinkles in Ms. Fielding’s forehead deepened. “You’re telling me you work two jobs and still can’t take care of your son but want to say no to my offer?”

“I don’t know you and—”

Ms. Fielding grabbed her arm and pulled her toward the elevator. “Let’s eat something first and then we’ll see.”

“No!” Sherry stopped and broke free from Ms. Fielding’s grip. “I really have to get Jake’s things.”

“As the nurse said, security has been informed so there’s no need for you to rush.” Under her breath, she added, “Not for you at least.”

As if being an actress on a stage who had just been given her cue, Nurse Tayler left Jake’s room. “I will inform the nurse on duty to look after Jake while you’re gone.”

“Thank you,” Sherry said.

Nurse Tayler gave them a polite smile and disappeared around a corner.

Sherry banged her fist against the wall in frustration. “No, I really don’t have time. The car I came here in was borrowed.”

“And?”

“I have to give it back. And the last bus into town will leave close to ten.” With any luck, Andy was asleep by now. She couldn’t bear the thought of having another confrontation with him tonight.

“Hey, you all right?” Ms. Fielding asked.

“Yeah, sure. I just have to—”

“Take the car back. Got it. Listen, I will follow you in my car and bring you back to the hospital. This way you have some minutes to spare to have a bite and think about my offer.”

To be followed by this woman was not at all what she wanted, but she had to be realistic. It would be almost impossible to catch the last bus into town even if she broke the speed limit.

“Come on.” Ms. Fielding pushed her toward the elevator. “We’ll grab a bite and—”

“I can eat at home.”

“Ah, why not eat in one of the fast food places around?”

Sherry stepped away from her.

“Jeez, let’s go. Your boy is waiting. And he will wait much longer if you get into an accident because you forgot to eat.”

Forgot? She would have laughed at the absurdity of it all. Yet she had to face the truth; Ms. Fielding was right. She didn’t feel good, so eating something before driving home was the right thing to do. Sherry’s two credit cards were maxed out. That left the contents of her wallet. She got it out and peeked in. Three dollars. That would have to do the trick. There had to be a vending machine nearby. “Okay, just give me a minute, and I—”

“Don’t even think about getting a chocolate bar or something like that. You need real food in your stomach. Now stop making this complicated. The food’s on me.”

They were staring at each other while the time ticked.

Thinking was hard, so despite hating it, Sherry gave in. “Let’s go.”

Chapter 5

Whenever traffic allowed, Madison looked over to Sherry, who was sitting in the passenger seat staring down at her knees, some strands of hair flying in the cool late-summer air. What if she collapsed again, as she had in the hospital?

Not that Madison would ever admit it, but she had been shocked to learn that Sherry hadn’t eaten all day. And she had two jobs? That couldn’t be true. Because if it were, surely Sherry would have jumped at the chance to earn such easy money, wouldn’t she?

Madison turned into the drive-in of the fast food place. She extended her elbow over the driver’s door, waited for the greeting from the loudspeaker, and placed their order.

“Oh, no,” Sherry interrupted her as soon as she had ordered. “That’s too mu—”

Madison stopped her by raising her hand. As thin as this waitress was, she could use every ounce of food.

Sherry folded her arms in front of her chest and pressed her lips together.

What the hell was her problem? Hopefully, she wouldn’t be this bitchy all the time. After paying and finally collecting the food, Madison drove to a parking spot where she shut off the engine.

She fished out Sherry’s burger and fries, and when Sherry hesitantly accepted it, Madison got out her salad and plastic fork. The cheap meal sitting on her lap stole what was left of her appetite. She hadn’t been very hungry to begin with.

Sherry, on the other hand, should have been starving, but she just eyed her food as if thinking about how to eat it.

Maybe she would start eating if Madison did. Against her better judgment, Madison opened her plastic-encased salad and speared one piece of fried chicken. It felt like rubber in her mouth. She swallowed after barely chewing it. “You need the calories.”

Sherry still didn’t move.

What the hell was her problem? “Eat.” Madison switched on the dome light and pointed toward the Coke between them. “And drink.” When Sherry still didn’t move, she added, “It’s impolite not to eat when someone else invites you.”

“I didn’t ask you to.” But despite her words, Sherry took the burger out of its wrapping. “Thanks.” She stared at the burger as if it were a fruit from the Garden of Eden.

“What are you waiting for?”

Sherry looked at her with a guarded expression. “Why are you doing this?”

Madison put the plastic fork down. Even though she couldn’t eat more of this, she said, “I’m hungry, and I thought you were too.”

“No, um, I mean, yeah.” Sherry sighed as if frustrated with herself. “I was talking about your offer.” When Madison took a moment to answer, she studied the burger and finally took a bite. Then a second.

About time. Madison leaned back in her seat. “Why I make this offer doesn’t concern you. It’s on the table.” She faced Sherry, who had already finished half the burger. “If you want to keep stumbling through life like this, go ahead. But if you don’t want to worry about money anymore and want to be sure that your kid is taken care of, you’d better accept my offer.”

Instead of answering, Sherry looked at her over the straw of the Coke she was sucking on.

Madison’s mouth went dry. Sherry might be a little too much on the skinny side for her taste, but she was still an attractive woman, and the vision of her mouth caressing the straw of her drink was doing unmentionable things to Madison’s stomach.

The straw popped out of her mouth. “What exactly would I have to do?”

“Convince people that you, I, and the boy are a happy family. You move into my apartment and—”

“Wait!” Sherry rubbed a hand over her face. “Jake and I would have to move in with you?”

“Yes.”

“When?”

“As soon as possible.” The sooner the show started, the sooner her grandmother could see it.

Sherry took another sip. “And…and what would I do there? I mean, other than living at your place.”

“For starters, I’d like you to come with me to events and pretend to be in love with me.”

“You mean like holding hands?”

“Sure, and kissing, of course.” Thinking about kissing Sherry made Madison feel giddy.

Sherry swallowed hard. “K-kissing?”

“Hey, I don’t have a contagious disease.” She inspected her fingernails. “A lot of women would give their right hand to kiss me.”

A noise between a cough and a snort escaped Sherry’s lips.

“Do you think that’s funny?” Madison spoke louder than intended. Nobody made fun of her, and certainly not this little waitress.

Sherry pressed her lips together and shook her head.

Maybe it hadn’t been the best idea to choose this woman, but now that she had placed a bet with Janice, she couldn’t back off. Maybe Sherry would give in if she pressed further. “Will you do it or not?”

“How exactly would I get my money? And you said Jake would be taken care of medically.”

At least she had listened. “You and your son will have everything you need. And when the job is done successfully, you’ll get a bonus. Let’s say ten grand.”

Sherry had been about to take another bite, but she stopped in her tracks. “How long would I have to play the role of your partner?”

It seemed there was no way but to tell Sherry the truth. “My grandmother intents to cut me out of her will. She thinks I’m irresponsible and…other things.” Madison let her hand slide over the leather-bound wheel. “She’s a very wealthy woman. Cutting me off… That’s not an option.” Madison looked at Sherry. “But she’s old. She’ll bite the dust…um, I mean she won’t live that much longer. However, for now she needs to be convinced that I’ve changed and that I’m the grandchild she wants me to be. So we have to pretend to be a couple at least until she thinks I’ve changed.”

Sherry hesitated but then continued to eat. After a few seconds, she asked in an almost casual tone, “Your grandmother would be happy to have a lesbian grandkid?”

Madison snorted. “Absolutely not. But she knows that I’m a lesbian. If I show up at her door with a guy, she would never buy it.” The leather seat under her squeaked when she shifted toward Sherry. “So, do we have a deal?”

Sherry finished the burger and took some fries. “Would we have a contract?”

“A contract?” Janice probably could scribble something down. “Sure. I’ve got a lawyer who will take care of it. But of course it’s all confidential. Nobody would be allowed to know about it. Deal?”

Sherry just stared at her.

This evening seemed to last forever, and all Madison wanted to do was to meet Phil and the guys for a few drinks in their favorite club. Oh, shit! She had totally forgotten about them. Phil was probably wondering where she was.

Madison opened the door. “Think about it. I’ll be right back.” She took the remains of her disgusting plastic salad, left the car, and closed the door behind her. After throwing the food in a trash can, she got her cell out and called Phil.

When the call was finally accepted, bass pounded through the speaker. “Phil?” she almost shouted.

“Mad?”

“Yeah, sorry, I’m late.”

“Late? You’re not here? Where’re you?”

Great. Nobody had even noticed her absence. She walked back to the car. “Long story. You won’t believe it.”

Sherry was still eating her fries while surveying her food as if she wasn’t listening in on Madison’s call.

As if.

“Aha.” Phil mumbled something to someone in the background, then said more loudly, “You can let me know when you get here. Or shall we meet at your place instead? We thought we could do the usual and have a party at your place.”

A party? Normally, she wouldn’t have hesitated to agree, but if she wanted to follow her plan, she would have to stop holding her legendary parties.

At least for a while. Until the old witch burns in hell. “Sorry, pal. I can’t. I’ll explain later.”

“What? Sorry, it’s so loud here. We’ll be there at about one, I guess.”

“No! Dammit, Phil. I can’t do that.”

“You can’t do what?”

“I can’t party with you.”

Phil laughed. “You’re kidding, right?”

“No. Sorry.” She’d had enough of Phil and this conversation.

“Um, okay.”

“See ya. I’ll try to make it to the club.”

Phil ended the call without answering.

What an asshole. Madison pushed the phone back into her pants pocket and got back into the car.

Sherry flinched when Ms. Fielding yanked open the door, sank into the driver’s seat, and pulled the door violently closed. “And? Have you made up your mind?”

What kind of mother would she be if she didn’t accept the offer? Offer? This is blackmail. But Andy would still want “payment” for borrowing his car, and it seemed that he had lost the last bit of modesty toward her. What if he expected more than just the rent from her now? And then there was Hank. He was a good guy, but he wouldn’t keep allowing her to go home early or not show up at all when Jake was sick again. Not to mention the grocery store. She was on notice there already, and it was only a matter of time until she lost the job if things continued that way.

“As soon as you’ve signed the contract, I will settle the hospital bill for the boy,” Ms. Fielding said.

“How many hours a week would I have to be…um, available for you?”

Madison blinked. “Hours? The whole time of course. Why?”

The whole time? “You want me to give up my jobs?”

“So what?”

“You’ve got to be kidding me.” Sherry took a deep breath, hoping it would help her calm down. It didn’t. “This won’t work. When this thing ends, I would be out of a job and—”

“Cut out the crap. What I pay you plus your bonus at the end should be more than enough to last you until you find something new. Besides, how hard can it be to find a job as a waitress or as a cashier in a grocery store?” Ms. Fielding shifted impatiently in her seat. “Yes or no? I want your decision now.”

Decision? There was no decision to make but to do what Ms. Fielding demanded. Jake needed the surgery now, not in a few months or a year. A chance like this happened once in a lifetime. If at all. “I…” Sherry’s heart was beating wildly as if trying to burst out of her chest. “I’ll do it.”

For a few seconds, Ms. Fielding stared at her as if she wasn’t sure she had heard her correctly. Then a broad grin spread across her face. “See, that wasn’t so hard.” She patted Sherry on the shoulder.

Sherry flinched at the touch.

“You’re doing the right thing.”

Sherry wasn’t so sure about that.

Ms. Fielding took the empty food container from her, opened the door, and threw it in a trash bin beside the vehicle. “Let’s get your car and take it back.” She closed the door.

Sherry bit her lip. Hopefully, Andy had passed out by now.

Ms. Fielding started the car and drove off the parking lot. Looking fleetingly toward Sherry, she said, “Something on your mind I should know about?”

She has to know that Andy might be waiting for me. “I’m worried about what I’m expected to pay for borrowing the car.”

“Whatever it is, it goes on my tab.”

“You don’t understand. Andy, my landlord, it’s his car. And he…he doesn’t want money for the car. At least that isn’t all he wants.”

“So what does he want?” Ms. Fielding waved her hand as if to get rid of an annoying fly. “You know what? I don’t care what he wants. We give this Randy—”

“Andy.”

“Whatever. We put a hundred-dollar bill in his car and that’s it.”

She wasn’t sure what made her angrier: to be treated like a child or that Ms. Fielding was about to spend so much money on her behalf. There’s nothing I can do about it.

For the remainder of the drive back to the hospital parking lot, they didn’t speak.

When Ms. Fielding turned off the engine in front of the hospital, the silence was deafening.

Sherry opened the door. “So, you’re going to follow me, right, Ms. Fielding?”

“Mad. Everybody calls me Mad.”

Should she laugh or cry? The irony of that nickname didn’t escape her. A short while ago, she’d thought of Madison as a mad woman. “Um, Mad?”

“My nickname. All my friends call me that.”

“Your grandma too?” And what about her parents? Should she ask? Better not. There had to be a reason for her not mentioning them.

“What?”

“Your grandma is the reason why you’re entering into this charade, right?”

“Right. Yeah, well, she calls me Madison. But don’t call her Grandma. She insists on being called Grandmother.”

“In that case, do you really think it’s a good idea that I call you Mad? Wouldn’t it be better if I called you Madison as well?” It would certainly ease Sherry’s mind not to call this woman Mad all the time.

Ms. Fielding sighed. “Guess you’re right. Fine, you can call me Madison. And I will call you Sherry, or shall I call you Ms. Miller until we’ve had our first kiss?”

Sherry’s gaze landed on her lips. Try as she might, she couldn’t imagine kissing this woman—Madison. On the other hand, it couldn’t be any worse than kissing Andy. That thought caused a gag impulse she managed to suppress. Barely.

“Just kidding. You have to kiss me when the role asks for it, but that’s it. As long as we’re convincing. If you think you can do it without practice, it’s all good.”

Sherry got out of the car. “I guess I know how to kiss.”

Chapter 6

Madison’s fingertips drummed on the wheel with the rhythm of the music. Pink blared out of the speakers, and Madison joined in with the singing.

Why was Sherry, who was in front of her, driving like a turtle? Nobody gave a shit about the speed limit when the police weren’t close by.

Sherry slowed down even more and turned into a street with more potholes than Madison could count. Between various high spruces emerged tiny trailer houses, wooden and mostly with concrete foundations. There were no street lights, and the farther they drove into this trailer park, the more run-down the place appeared in the dark.

Trash lay around most of the ramshackle huts. The buildings, if you could call them that, had seen better days with peeled-off paint, street art, and at least one broken window. How could anybody live like this?

Sherry turned into another street, which actually wasn’t more than a dirt road. Old, mostly run-down trailers formed a huge U. No cars were parked in front of them.

Between two trailers, Sherry stopped the car and stepped out.

This was where she lived?

Only one trailer had lights on. Madison swallowed against the lump in her throat. She didn’t even have a taser.

Not really able to see anything in the darkness, she hesitated before leaving her car. On shaky legs, she closed her door and marched toward Sherry, who glared at her while closing the car door very carefully, as if afraid to make any noise.

Maybe that was exactly what Madison should have done. What if someone had heard them and came out to rob her? As fast as she could, she fished some bills out of her pants pocket and counted a hundred bucks. She pressed the money into Sherry’s hand. “Here. Throw the money and the car keys in his mailbox, get your stuff, and let’s go.” She squinted into the dark. “Um, if he has a mailbox.”

“I’m on it,” Sherry whispered. She seemed to be just as eager that nobody found out they were here.

Sherry hurried to a trailer set in the bend of the U, one without any lights on inside. When she put the money and the car keys into a little metal box beside the door, the clanking was loud enough to wake up the dead.

Sherry ignored the noise and rushed back to Madison to point toward the only trailer, which still had the lights on. “My best friend lives there. She has Jake’s pajamas. We’ll go there first, then to my trailer, the one beside it.”

Compared to the other trailers in this corner of the trailer park, it was obvious that Sherry and her neighbor kept their homes clean and tidy. At least Sherry wasn’t messy.

The sound of a dog barking from one of the shabby trailers made Madison flinch.

“Shut the fuck up over there!” someone shouted from a direction opposite where the barking had originated.

Another bark was followed by a smoky laugh and a fierce coughing.

Madison glanced over her shoulder, making sure that nobody was trying to sneak up on them. “Let’s keep this short.”

Sherry nodded without turning back to her and knocked on her friend’s trailer door.

The door opened just a crack, and an overweight African American woman with gray strands in her otherwise black hair peeked out. “Sherry?” The woman opened the door fully and gestured at her to enter. When she saw Madison, she froze. “Who’s that?”

“I’ll tell you in a second.”

“Where’s Jake?” she asked. “Is he all right?”

“Rita Mae, please.”

“Okay, okay. Come on in.” She stepped to the side and closed the door first with a small lock then with a larger bolt.

Madison suppressed a snort. The lock was safer than the door. One kick against the hinges of the door and it would be gone.

The elderly woman, maybe in her mid-fifties or early sixties, sank onto a worn-out booth. “I’m all ears.”

Madison took the tiny space in. Hopefully, she wouldn’t catch any diseases here. Don’t overreact. It smelled like cleaning agents, and there was no trash lying around. The inside reflected the tidy outside area. Yes, the plastic walls were dented, and yes, the little kitchen had also seen better days, but considering everything, this place could probably be called well taken care of. That didn’t change the fact that Madison felt claustrophobic in this tiny can.

Sherry took a seat at the other end of the booth, and Madison squeezed in beside her.

“They kept Jake in the hospital.”

Sherry’s friend sucked in a breath.

“I’m here to get his pajamas. I’m going back to the hospital to stay with him.”

The woman put one hand to her chest as if having a heart attack. “God almighty, is it that bad?”

“It’s his tonsils again.” Sherry rubbed her forehead as if that would help her to find the right words to explain what was going on. “The doctor wanted to keep him there and to operate on him as soon as the infection is under control.”

“The poor boy. It has to be really bad if they’re keeping him in.” Her eyes widened. “Heavens, is that covered by the insurance? If you need some cash…” With both hands, she heaved herself up, bent down, and fished a can out from under the booth. “I don’t have much saved, but…”

She had to be kidding. Had Madison somehow landed in a bad B-movie? The poor old woman was about to sacrifice her last saving to help her unfortunate neighbor? Not for the first time within the last few hours, Madison had to fight the urge to roll her eyes. Was there any cliché not met here? Where was the beloved three-legged cat or the grandson with the good heart but poor choice in friends waiting in jail for parole? Searching for the photos of a cat or grandson, she found none.

Sherry held up a hand. “Rita Mae, that’s so nice of you, but I don’t need your money.”

The woman stared at Sherry as if she had lost her mind. “Nonsense. Of course you need every cent you can get. Even if it—”

“No,” Madison said. “She doesn’t.”

Rita-something stored the can back under her seating before putting her hands on her ample hips. “And you are?”

“This is Madison Fielding. She…she hired me.”

Madison gasped. Had Sherry lost her mind? “We need to talk,” Madison growled and stood. “Come with me.”

“Where to?”

Even though she should know this place by heart after all her scrutiny, she was still clueless where to go. “Is there another, um…room?” she asked Rita-whatever.

“My bedroom is this way, but the bed isn’t ma—”

“That’ll do.” Madison grabbed Sherry’s hand and dragged her into the so-called bedroom. As soon as she had pulled the plastic door closed, Madison whirled around. “You can’t tell everybody and their dog about our agreement. What if my grandmother hires an investigator to check you out?” She pointed toward the closed door. “Your neighbor would sing faster than—”

“You can trust her,” Sherry said. “She’s my friend and would never do anything to harm me.”

“Everybody can be bought.”

Sherry stared at her as if she’d been slapped. “Rita Mae isn’t like that. I trust her.”

Madison searched Sherry’s pale face. “How can you be so sure?”

“I just am.”

“I’ve got a bad feeling about this.”

Sherry inspected her shoes for a moment before looking Madison straight in the eye. “Then hire her too.”

Madison grimaced. “No, thanks. She’s not my type. Besides, I want to pretend to have a happy family, not a harem.”

The corner of Sherry’s mouth twitched. It looked good on her. “As a housekeeper. Currently, she cleans houses while Jake’s at school. And then she stays with him.” She swallowed. “It would break their hearts to be separated.”

Everything was getting more complicated by the minute. Was it even worth all this trouble?

“I already have a cleaning lady. And I don’t need a housekeeper.” Madison walked up and down in the room. Two steps in one direction and two back. “She can come to visit if she must.”

“She could keep an eye on Jake when we have to go somewhere. And if she lived with us as well, she could also—”

“Wait!” Madison stopped dead in her tracks. “My home’s not a hotel. Are there any other relatives or friends I should take in?”

Sherry’s expression hardened. “I’m sorry for being so blunt, but you don’t give me the impression that free space in your home would be an issue.” She squeezed her eyes shut. Maybe to calm down or to think of another argument for her crazy plan. When Sherry looked up again, her eyes seemed to be determined not to give in. “Taking her in as well is the only way to make sure that she won’t talk to anybody about this.”

Damn, she was right. Not that this mother hen in the next room couldn’t still talk, but the chances of that happening were at least smaller that way. It seemed like her workout room would have to be turned into another bedroom. “Great,” she mumbled under her breath.

“What?”

“Nothing.” Before she could talk herself out of it, Madison stomped toward the door. “Let’s give your friend Rita March the good news so that we can finally leave.” Madison held up a finger in warning. “But I warn you, if she can’t keep her mouth shut, you’re in trouble too.”

“She won’t tell anybody,” Sherry said. “And Madison?”

“Yeah?”

“Her name’s Rita Mae.”

“Whatever.” Madison opened the door and left the so-called bedroom.

When Madison plopped back down onto the booth, the whole trailer was shaking. With her luck today, it would collapse right under her butt. “Tell her.”

Sherry squeezed in beside her friend. “Madison wants to offer you a job too.”

“A job?” She regarded Madison. “What kind of job?”

“Housekeeper,” Madison said.

“Madison would like you to move in with her to take care of the household and to keep an eye on Jake, when we’re gone.”

“What does that mean? Why would Jake be there?” Rita Mae asked. “What’s going on here?”

“Madison has offered to pay me to, um, play her partner. Jake and I will move in with her soon.”

Rita Mae’s jaw dropped.

“Of course we’re not really a couple,” Sherry continued. “But it’s very important that everybody around us thinks so.”

“Couple? Like in…lesbian couple?”

Sherry nodded.

Rita Mae’s face contorted as if she felt nauseous. “But why? You are not a lesb—”

“All you need to know is that Sherry is playing my partner,” Madison said. “The reasons behind it are none of your concern.”

Rita Mae covered one of Sherry’s hands with her own. “What’s she paying you, dear?”

“Doesn’t matter,” Madison grumbled. This woman knew too much already.

“Please, Rita Mae, stop asking questions,” Sherry said. “Just imagine what that would mean. No need to worry any more about Andy and that he might throw you out at any moment.”

“As long as I’ve got the job. And then?”

Madison rolled her eyes. You’d think she’s living in the Ritz Carlton. “I don’t wanna go out on a limb here, but I guess you can do better than this place.” When the old women hesitated, Madison added, “I’ll find a good place for you when this is over. Happy?”

Rita Mae nodded. “And how much are you gonna pay me?”

Someone living in a place like this would probably work for even the smallest amount of money. To test her theory she said, “Two hundred dollars a week and free board and lodging.”

Sherry cleared her throat and glared at her.

Madison glared back but said, “Okay, three hundred, but that’s my last offer. Take it or leave it.”

For the first time since meeting her, Rita Mae actually smiled. “You’ve got yourself a housekeeper, Ms. Fielding.”

“Deal. Oh, and call me Madison.”

Yawning, Madison entered her apartment, let the door click shut behind her, and threw her jacket in the checkroom. The jacket fell, but she didn’t care.

The clock in the open kitchen revealed that it was a couple of minutes past one a.m. She had driven Sherry back to the hospital and filled out the billing information she had forgotten earlier back at the nurses’ station. Now she wasn’t in the mood anymore for Phil and the club. Truth be told, she felt exhausted.

She rubbed her burning eyes. Just a few hours had turned her life completely upside down.

From this day on, she would pretend to be a family person. “Ha!” she called into the empty apartment. “Me a family person.” She slipped out of her shoes and left them in the middle of the hallway. Carmen would take care of them in the morning.

A groan escaped her lips. She had all but forgotten about her. “Guess I need to fire her now that Rita Mae’s got the job.” She hated drama. But maybe kicking her out wasn’t even necessary. Rita Mae was old and would probably have enough on her plate looking after the boy and maybe cooking. So she probably wouldn’t complain if Carmen came her usual three times a week to clean. Besides, Madison had given Rita Mae the job just so that she kept her mouth shut.

Problem solved. Carmen keeps her job.

Pleased with herself, Madison unbuttoned her blouse and pressed play on the blinking answering machine.

After a beep that sounded overly loud in the quiet apartment, Janice’s voice came through the speaker. “Hey, Mad, where are you? I can’t reach you on your cell.”

Madison fished her smartphone out of her pocket. Two missed calls. Right, she had put the phone on silent upon entering the first hospital on her search for Sherry.

“Anyway, I just got your message,” Janice continued. “I’m really impressed that you found your waitress and got her to do it. Call me when you’re home to talk about the details of the contract. Ah, you know what? Don’t call me. Who knows how long you’ll be partying tonight.”

“If only you knew.” Madison peeled off her blouse and threw it onto the couch.

“Call me tomorrow or send me a message to talk about everything. Good night.”

There was another beep and a second message played.

“Hello, Mad.”

With half-opened pants, Madison froze and stared at the answering machine. Was that Danielle’s voice?

“I know it’s been a while, but…” That was Danielle’s voice all right. “Maybe, um, we could do something together. Don’t know…meet for a drink or just talk. Call me if you’d like that. My number hasn’t changed.” Another beep and everything went quiet.

Madison sank onto the couch. She and Danielle hadn’t spoken for four or maybe five years. Since you got totally smashed, told her that you love her, and tried to kiss her. Looking back, she couldn’t understand how she could have done that. Danielle was her cousin, for Christ’s sake! Okay, they were only second cousins, but still… It had been nothing more than a crush, and in the light of day—without too much alcohol to cloud her judgment—an entirely platonic one. God, she had been so messed up emotionally back then. At least nowadays she saw things more clearly. Not just about Danielle but about the fact that she wasn’t capable of falling in love with anybody. She knew that now. At least about this one thing, Grandmother Eileen had been right about her.

Madison threw her pants on top of her blouse. Whatever Danielle’s reason to call, Madison’s feelings for her had changed. She stood and strolled toward the bathroom. Socks, her panties, and bra were discarded along the way.

The water pattering down on her felt heavenly. Was Sherry sleeping right now? That thought made her pause. Who cared what Sherry did?

Shaking her head at herself, Madison decided to get up before noon tomorrow to start planning all the moving—or to be precise, to find someone who could take care of it. Perhaps Janice would know someone. After all, Madison was many things, but she was not a person who bothered with details.

Chapter 7

The hands of the clock in the waiting room seemed to creep around in slow motion. Jake had been taken to the operating room about an hour and a half ago. For Sherry, the wait seemed an impossible task.

Her favorite book, a novel about an Irish immigrant searching for a better life in America in the 1930s, usually helped her to escape to another world. But today she just couldn’t concentrate on Frank McCourt and his story, so she put the book into her bag.

She stood, giving in to her nervousness, and marched up and down the almost empty waiting room.

“Have you heard anything from Madison?” Rita Mae asked.

Sherry reached one end of the room and turned. When she came closer again, she asked, “Do we really have to talk about that right now?” That woman and their agreement was the last thing on her mind.

“Why not?”

Sherry opened her mouth to say, “Because some doctor is cutting inside my son’s throat right now,” but talking about something—anything—to keep her mind occupied probably wasn’t such a bad idea. “No, I haven’t heard a thing. I guess she’s busy with the moving preparations. But yesterday her interior designer called. Can you imagine? An interior designer. Anyway, she wanted to know what kind of bed and wallpaper Jake wants to have in his room.” A smile formed on her lips. “He was so excited.”

“And?” Rita Mae giggled, but she sobered when the only other people in the waiting room, a couple, glared at her disapprovingly. “Will you in the future be sleeping in a room full of airplanes on the walls or what?”

Sherry sat down beside Rita Mae so that she didn’t need to shout through half of the waiting room. “Spiderwebs. He wants to have Spiderman wallpaper and a racing car bed.”

Before Rita Mae could answer, the doors to the operating theater opened and someone in scrubs emerged.

The man passed without taking notice of them.

Sherry looked to the closed door again. Behind it, Jake was lying on an operating table somewhere.

“It’s gonna be all right.” Rita Mae covered Sherry’s hand with her own. “All over the world, kids get their tonsils out every day.”

“But those kids are not my baby.”

Rita Mae caressed the back of Sherry’s hand with her thumb.

Sherry took Rita Mae’s rough one in hers. When her mother had kicked her out back when she had found out Sherry was pregnant, she never would have thought to have something like a family helping her. But Rita Mae was more than a friend to her. And even though she was much older than Sherry’s mother, she felt closer to her than she had ever to the woman who had given birth to her. “Thank you.”

“For what?”

Sherry leaned her head against Rita Mae’s shoulder. “For everything.”

They were silent for a few minutes until Rita Mae said, “You haven’t told me how Jake reacted to the news that we’re moving.”

Sherry sat up, and her mouth twitched at the memory. “When I told him we were moving into the city, he was so excited. He’s looking forward to it. And when the interior designer called yesterday…” She shook her head. “He was so excited and didn’t stop asking questions.”

“And what did you tell him? Especially about Madison.”

“I couldn’t tell him much about what’s awaiting us. And about Madison…you know, he really surprised me there. He’s seen her just once, but his only question after I told him we would move in with her was if there was a playground somewhere nearby.”

Rita Mae waved a hand. “Nothing surprising there. Kids think differently than we do.”

“I guess you’re right.” Once more, she leaned against Rita Mae’s shoulder. “What would I do without you?”

“You’d be just fine.” Rita Mae straightened. “Enough now with all this mushy talk. Let’s—”

Doctor Phillips, Jake’s surgeon, came through the doors and headed over to them.

Sherry jumped up. “How is he?”

“Everything went great. He’s in the recovery room.”

Tension left her body like a pierced balloon.

“What took so long?” Rita Mae asked while standing up. “My little brother Malcom had his tonsils out as a kid, and it didn’t take half that long.”

So much for Rita Mae’s calming words just minutes ago.

Dr. Phillips smirked. “I doubt it was that fast. However, Jake is a very curious boy. Despite the sedative we gave him, he was still awake when he reached the OR. And he wanted us to explain every little detail before we gave him the anesthetic.” Still smiling, he shook his head. “Most kids cry when they’re awake at that point, but Jake didn’t stop asking questions.”

Sherry had to smile too. “That’s my baby.”

“So, we tried to explain everything to him in as much detail as possible until we put him to sleep.” Grinning, he added, “Who knows, maybe Jake will start a medical career in the future. I’ll keep my eyes open for a Doctor Miller in let’s say twenty years.”

For a moment, Sherry allowed herself to dream about having the money to pay for his schooling. A sigh escaped her when she had to admit that even if she saved every cent she got from the agreement with Madison, it was very unlikely that she could scrape enough together for that. But she would try anyway.

“When will he be able to come home?” Rita Mae asked.

“I don’t expect any complications, so the day after tomorrow.”

“Thank you, Doctor,” Sherry said.

“My pleasure. If you’d excuse me now, please. I’d like to look in on Jake again. He’ll be back in his room as soon as he wakes up. I recommend waiting there.”

“We will.” Sherry beamed. “Thank you so much.”

Doctor Phillips nodded and disappeared through the doors.

Sherry sank bank onto one of the chairs. Doctor Miller. Sounds wonderful.

Madison’s body vibrated with the bass blaring through Contaminated’s loudspeakers. After staying away from her apartment for a few days to let the interior designer Janice had recommended do her job, she was no longer eager to party with Phil and the guys.

Phil hadn’t even asked what had led to her crashing at his place. Maybe he thought she simply was in the mood for his around-the-clock partying. Or maybe he just didn’t care what was going on with her.

Whatever it was, she had to tell him today about Sherry. The day after tomorrow, Sherry, the boy, and Rita Mae would move in.

But after thinking about it, she had decided she would tell him the same crap as Grandmother Eileen because Phil couldn’t keep a secret to save his life.

Madison strolled to the bar and ordered a whiskey sour. She drained the glass in one gulp, ignoring a woman who smiled at her seductively. No way was she going to react to that. She was supposed to be a woman in love.

She made her way past the dancefloor to some tables set to the side when a woman breathed in her ear, “Hi, honey,” while grabbing her shoulders from behind.

Madison turned. “Hey, Nicki. How’s it going?” Not that she cared or even wanted to talk to her, but they had spent a few nice hours together, so…

“Depends.”

Madison kept on going but asked over her shoulder, “On what?”

“If you wanna join me.” She gestured to the back of the club, where some dark corners invited patrons to participate in spontaneous activities between adults.

Nicki was one of the few women she had had fun with more than once. Mostly because she wasn’t clingy or interested in anything more than some fun. In the past Madison would have dragged her into the back to let off some steam, but if she wanted to be convincing in her temporary role, having some fun with Nicki was not an option. Besides, telling her no and explaining why would provide a good test run. “I’m sorry, sugar. But…I’m taken.”

“Um, what?” Nicki bent forward, showing Madison her ample cleavage. “Did you just say you’re taken?”

“Yup. I’m totally in love.”

Nicki gaped at her as if she’d told her she was an alien.

“Sure, and I’m Madonna.” Nicki pushed her sexy body toward Madison’s.

Madison’s mouth went dry. She forced her attention away from Nikki’s huge breasts and swallowed. “I’m serious.”

“Aha.” Nicki trailed her index finger along Madison’s neck and down between her breasts before finally grabbing Madison’s belt. She bit her lip, then let go of Madison slowly. “Another time, then.” She whirled around and flounced away with swaying hips as if to show Madison what she’d miss tonight.

Great! Her libido hadn’t gotten the message that there would be a little break. It seemed her woman-in-love-act was as convincing as a person on a diet getting caught in a tub of ice cream.

Should she have called Sherry within the past few days? Or should she have even come for a visit to show the hospital staff what a dedicated partner and stepmother she was?

No. She hated hospitals, and she had no idea what to talk to Sherry about. Not that Madison was shy by any means. Maybe it was because she was about to share her home with strangers. But it had been her call, so she couldn’t very well complain about it now.

Why hadn’t she thought things through? Because you never think things through, that’s why. This was all getting so messy. She needed a distraction. Women were not an option for the time being. So spending time with the boys it was.

Finally, she arrived at their booth, but everybody but Phil and Liam were gone. Probably the others were busy dancing or having some other fun.

“Hey, Mad!” they shouted over the loud music.

Phil waved her over to the free spot beside him. “You look like shit,” he said when she sat. Without waiting for an answer, he took a long drink from his colorfully decorated cocktail.

Was it so obvious that her sleeping issues were back after Danielle’s call? And why hadn’t he commented on it earlier? It wasn’t as if they hadn’t seen each other in days.

Ah, who cares? After meeting Danielle tomorrow, things would get better again. Hopefully. “You know how to flatter a woman,” she said instead of telling him about Danielle. He didn’t know anything about that part of her past anyway. “You’re lucky to be gay or your hand would be your only company in bed.”

“Are we in a shitty mood tonight?” He bent closer and lowered his voice. “Seriously, you look beat. Wanna tell me what’s up?”

It was difficult to hide her surprise. He really seemed to care. “Later. Let me get settled first.” She needed a moment to come up with a believable story. Something she should have done already, but time had passed much too fast somehow.

Now would be her last chance to relax. Later tonight, she’d be back in her apartment to enjoy the calm before the storm even if it was just for a few hours.

Phil and Liam had cocktails in front of them and talked with each other as if Madison wasn’t there. It should have been nice to see them having a good time, but it somehow felt as if she wasn’t really part of it. That would change. Now. “So, what’s up?” she asked, interrupting their conversation about some guy called Henry. “Anything I missed?” She almost had to scream to be heard above the loud music.

“A few minutes ago, Phil had a quickie at the restrooms with that guy over there.” Liam pointed to a guy who strangely resembled Prince Charming from Shrek.

“I don’t give a shit who Phil is hooking up with. Tell me something interesting that I missed.”

A waitress approached. Madison didn’t even check out her cleavage as she usually did and just ordered a double Bacardi on the rocks. That would help her relax. The whiskey sour hadn’t improved her mood.

Phil chuckled. “Well, Liam got this rash on his—”

“Phil!” Liam leaned forward and covered Phil’s mouth with his palm.

A chick in a mini skirt chose that moment to swagger past them. With a clearly rehearsed movement, she threw her long blonde hair back over her shoulder and winked at Madison.

“Don’t even think about it,” Phil said as soon as Liam had lowered his hand. “She’s got STD written in big letters all over her.”

Madison tore her gaze away from that delicious ass and turned to Phil. “You think so?”

Liam giggled.

Come to think of it, this was the perfect time to let the show begin. “I wasn’t interested anyway. I…I’m taken.”

Phil had shoved a piece of pineapple from his cocktail into his mouth. He pulled the stem of his little umbrella slowly from between his lips. Without swallowing, he asked around the piece of fruit, “No shit?”

“Is it Kristy?” Liam asked.

Phil waved dismissively. “Nah, that stewardess wasn’t Mad’s type. Not for more than a bit of fun, anyway.” After a pause, he asked, “Right?” Before she could answer, he continued, “Or is she the reason that you’re crashing at my place and why didn’t you tell me until now? How long has this been going on?”

Kristy? Ah, so that was her name. “Nope. Um, she was the last attempt to forget Sherry.” Oh, yes, that sounded good. “I’m so much in love. She is great and, um, because of her I had to get away from home for a bit. The whole moving-in stuff was too stressful for me and, um, I…I didn’t tell you guys because I was unsure how to do it.” At least the last part was true. Hopefully, all that rambling sounded more convincing to them than it did to her.

Liam tilted his head. “You really have a girlfriend? Like really? You?”

Madison inspected her fingernails in case her eyes might reveal the truth. Who would have thought that she could be such a bad liar? “Yeah. Sherry is awesome.”

“You lost me,” Phil mumbled. “You’ve got a girlfriend but hang out with us? Why didn’t you bring her or…I don’t know, help her with the moving?”

Okay, these were all good questions. Think! “She’s with her son right now. He’s in the hospital.”

Phil had just taken a sip of his cocktail. At the word son, he sprayed Liam on the other side of the table.

Liam glared at him. “Thanks, man.” Shaking his head, he wiped his shirt. “And who did the moving when she’s in—?”

“Who gives a shit?” Phil wiped his mouth with a napkin. “She’s got a son?”

“How old?” Liam asked.

“Who?” Madison blinked. “Sherry?”

“No, the boy.” Phil answered as if he could read Liam’s thoughts. He leaned closer. “But now that you brought that up, how old is your girl?”

“Um…” She should know the answer to both questions. “The boy’s six.” Or seven? And what about Sherry? She’d seemed pretty young when she’d smiled at her boy or when she’d thanked Madison in the parking lot for helping her. Yes, when she smiled her whole face lit up and she—

“Mad?”

“Well…” When Sherry didn’t smile—which was most of the time—she looked older, maybe in her late-twenties.

“Still with us?” Phil asked.

Madison leaned back and tried to appear casual. “Since when do you care about every detail of my love life?”

Phil raised both of his hands in defense. “Well, for once you usually don’t have a love life.” He finished his cocktail. “Wanna tell us at least what’s up with the kid? Why is he at the hospital?”

“He’s just had his tonsils out. Can we talk about something else now?”

“Jeez, can somebody get Mad a drink and fast? She really needs to calm down.”

Madison couldn’t agree more.

As if reading their minds, the waitress finally showed up and put everyone’s drinks on the table.

Phil took Madison’s drink and held it up to her. “Down it. You need it.” To the waitress, he said, “Honey, please get me another Giddy Gal and her”—he pointed to Madison—“another one of those.”

Madison downed the glass in one swallow. The familiar burning in her throat and belly calmed her down.

“How did you meet?” Phil put his arm around her casually. “And even more important, when will we meet her?”

“Soon.” What else could she answer?

Liam shook his head. “I still can’t believe it.”

“Let’s have a party next weekend,” Phil said. “So that we can meet your love.”

“Okay.” She leaned back. It sounded like a bad idea, but telling him no wasn’t an option if she wanted to convince them this was real.

When her second drink arrived, she ordered a round for all of them. It was time to relax and to party. At least this time, Phil and Liam thought there was a reason to celebrate for a change.

Chapter 8

Madison wiped her clammy hands on her pant legs. Over at the coffee bar, Danielle was waiting for her.

She straightened her shoulders and yanked the door open. Long-forgotten scents pierced her nostrils. Someone seemed to have ordered burritos, and the aroma of freshly brewed coffee wafted over. An irresistible combination.

Some tables had been moved since her last visit, and even though the interior had clearly gotten an upgrade, it still looked as inviting as it had back then.

“Mad!”

Madison turned. On wobbly legs, she stumbled toward a beaming Danielle, who sat at their favorite corner booth from so long ago.

Danielle’s long, red mane was still wild, and her freckles were prominent even in the dim light. Her bright green eyes shone as if she was really happy to see Madison. Danielle was as beautiful as ever.

Before Madison had the chance to think of something to say, Danielle jumped up and engulfed her in a fierce hug.

Madison froze. But the longer the embrace lasted, the more she relaxed into the gentle touch. Danielle’s warmth surrounded her like a fluffy blanket, and the tension fled Madison’s body. She inhaled Danielle’s flowery perfume while her arms wrapped around her cousin’s small form.

Too soon, Danielle let go and sat back down.

How could she have forgotten how wonderful it was to hug someone and to be hugged? Stop having those stupid thoughts. You’re not the cuddly type. She sank onto the bench opposite Danielle. “How are you doing?”

Danielle sipped her drink through a straw. “Great, and you?”

“Same.” Madison stared at her folded hands. The brief text messages they had exchanged hadn’t revealed the reason for this meeting. As much as she’d enjoyed spending time with Danielle as a teenager, now they had nothing left to talk about.

“You’re probably wondering why I called.” Danielle leaned back as if trying to get more distance between them. Or maybe because she felt the void. “I, um, need your advice and, uh, I also might have an offer for you.”

Her words could mean only one thing. “You’ve got money problems.”

Danielle cocked her head, making her curls bounce in the process. A smile grew into a laugh so carefree that a longing pierced through Madison like a punch in the stomach. A longing for what she didn’t know.

“My folks are not as rich as yours, but that doesn’t mean I just called you to—”

“You could have so much more, and you know it.” This conversation was as old as time. Since meeting Danielle and her parents at the age of twelve, she had never understood why Danielle’s parents weren’t interested in being part of the Fielding Empire.

“Don’t I know it? It doesn’t matter how often I tell Aunt Eileen I’m not interested in working for Fielding Inc., she keeps asking. And a few weeks ago, Aunt Eileen tried it again with Dad. When will she learn that neither of us wants to join the Fielding business? Why would we? Dad’s happy working in his garage. And business has never been better. And as for myself”—she grinned sheepishly—“I’m exactly where I want to be.”

Grandmother Eileen had offered Danielle and Bill a position? Danielle made at least some sense, but Bill? Even he seemed more qualified to the witch than Madison? “But he’s a mechanic, for Christ’s sake.”

“That’s what he told her too. And not for the first time. In the past three years alone, she’s asked him five times to join the business. Can you imagine?” She shook her head. “That’s ridiculous.”

Madison pressed her lips together. Five times? She hasn’t asked me once.

Danielle’s lips closed around the straw once more, and she took a healthy sip.

In the past, Madison might have felt hot seeing that, but now the view left her strangely cold.

“God, this caramel milkshake is heavenly. You should order one too.”

Milkshakes were the last thing she wanted right now. “What kind of advice do you need? And what strange offer do you have for me?”

Danielle’s open expression became serious as if a switch had been flipped. “There’s nothing strange about my offer.” Her gaze drilled into Madison before it softened. “Don’t you want to tell me first what’s happened with you these past years?”

Why was Danielle dragging this out? If there was something she wanted, she should just say so. “I graduated from college.”

“And then?”

“Nothing.” Damn. She should mention Sherry. “Oh, I’ve got a girlfriend, um, a partner, I mean. Sherry. It’s still fresh.”

Danielle’s straw plopped out of her mouth. “Wow. Have you got a photo?”

“No. I told you, it’s all still new.”

“How new?”

“Just new.” The fewer details she mentioned, the lower the risk of getting caught in a lie.

Danielle tilted her head. “What does she do for a living?”

“Why the interrogation?” When Danielle flinched, Madison said quietly, “She’s a waitress, okay?”

Danielle’s head snapped up. “You fell in love with a waitress? You?”

Madison leaned back. “Why’s that so hard to believe?”

“Well, for one you treated all service people like slaves when we were younger. Same as Aunt Eileen.”

“You’re exaggerating.”

“Really? Even with Clarice, you—”

Madison surged forward. “Why did you want to see me?” They’d done enough small talk, and she definitely didn’t want to talk about the first woman she’d slept with, now or at any other time, for that matter.

Danielle’s expression sobered. “Nice that you’re so interested in what happened to me in the past years. Really touching how much you care.”

Dammit! It wasn’t that she didn’t care, but she had a bad feeling about all this, so it was better to face the shit before it hit the fan. On the other hand, even she had to admit that she was being rude. And truth be told, she did still care about Danielle and what she had been up to since they had last seen each other. “Okay.” She sighed. “So what have you been doing all this time?”

After hesitating for a moment, Danielle turned toward the bar and signaled to her empty glass. “You also want one?”

“Sure.” What else was she supposed to say?

Danielle held up two fingers.

“The service isn’t all too stellar these days,” Madison grumbled. “Nobody seems to care that I came in a few minutes ago or that I might want to drink something.”

“The service’s understaffed.”

“How would you know? You still a regular here?” Had she been coming even after they stopped hanging out here together? The thought hurt.

A smile played around Danielle’s lips. “I bought the Archer five months ago.”

“What?” What the hell did Danielle want with a coffee bar?

“The owners retired.”

Rendering Madison speechless was a rare accomplishment, but Danielle had managed to do just that.

“They remembered us. Our badly made fake IDs obviously left a lasting impression.”

Despite the shock, Madison had to smile at the memory. When she had gotten the fake IDs so she could have a drink despite being just sixteen, Danielle had always accompanied her to the Archer but never touched any alcohol herself—not even once. The old owner of the Archer, Mr. Colberg, had looked the other way as long as Madison hadn’t overdone it, and Danielle had always seen to that. And now it was all Danielle’s. How surreal. “And what about your administrative job?”

“Working in township wasn’t really my cup of tea. Every day was the same. I didn’t have to get an MBA for that.”

“So because you were bored with your old job, you bought the Archer instead of accepting Grandmother Eileen’s offer to work at Fielding Inc. to make a fortune?”

“Working at Fielding Inc. would have been no different than working in township. I realized that I’m just not made for sitting around all day with my nose in paperwork.”

That was something Madison could relate to.

“And then there was the Archer. Truth is, I fell in love with this place when we were teenagers. The thought that it could be gone… It would have broken my heart. So I met with the Colbergs when I heard about them planning to retire.” Her eyes were shining with happiness. “To use words you can relate to, I think this place is a gold mine.”

“Why does this sound so negative coming from you?” Money was important. What was wrong about openly admitting that? Madison gestured toward the tables and the bar. “You seriously think you’ll make a lot of money with this?” Hedge funds were gold mines. McDonald’s branches were gold mines. But this place?

“Maybe not in your book.”

A young man brought them two huge milkshakes.

“Thanks, Jack.” Danielle grabbed her milkshake and immediately took a healthy swig.

“Did you say Jake?” Madison asked as soon as the waiter was out of earshot. The pale face of Sherry’s son, who was sitting on the treatment table in the ER, shot through her mind.

“No, it’s Jack. Why? Who’s Jake?”

“Sherry’s son.”

Danielle stared at her. “She’s got a son?”

Madison took a sip of her shake. “Mm-hmm, really good. They didn’t have these back then. Add rum and you’ve got yourself a great cocktail.”

“Or just leave out the rum and have a great milkshake.” Danielle grinned. “But let’s talk more about your, um, partner and her son. How old is he?”

“Six.” Good thing she’d practiced sounding convincing in the Contaminated.

“Wow. You as a stepmom…” Danielle stirred the milkshake with her straw as if she needed time to ponder this. “Guess you’ve changed a lot.”

“Don’t we all over time?” If Danielle kept asking questions about Sherry or Jake, she would be soon found out, so it was time to change the subject. “What about your love life?”

Danielle examined her shake thoroughly. Was she blushing?

Madison chuckled. “Who is he?”

Danielle fidgeted. “Um, that’s why I need your advice.”

Madison frowned. She certainly hadn’t seen that coming. “You call me after so many years to get my advice on how to screw around with some gu—”

“No. Yes.” She massaged her temples. “It’s not like that.”

Danielle had never really screwed around. The few relationships she’d had with a soccer player in high school and later with two guys in college weren’t anything to write home about. But Danielle had never had any problems attracting men. Not with her good looks and her friendly personality.

So why was she now asking Madison of all people for advice, especially after such a long time? She couldn’t give Danielle any advice on guys. The ones she hung out with were gay or bisexual at best.

Didn’t Danielle have any straight female friends who could give her some good advice?

“It’s about a woman,” Danielle said as if reading her thoughts.

Her mind went blank. Finally, she got out, “What?”

“Ruth’s been working in my dad’s garage for the past eight months. Well, eight months and four days, but who’s counting?”

“Ugh.” It was as if all the air had left Madison’s lungs. This had to be a bad joke. Where was the hidden camera? She inspected her surroundings but found nothing out of the ordinary.

Madison bent forward. “Let me get this straight, no pun intended. You’re interested in a mechanic, a woman, working for your father?”

Danielle glanced around, maybe to make sure nobody had overheard them. Leaning forward, she whispered, “Would you please lower your voice?”

As much as she wanted to let it go, it hurt that Danielle had never told her that she was also into women. “Why didn’t you tell me you’re bisexual?”

“You’re getting this all wrong. I was never attracted to women until I met Ruth, or I would have told you.”

It was hard to wrap her mind around this. “I guess I’ll have to take your word for it. So you want my advice on how to screw this mechanic?”

“No!” Danielle took a big sip. “I don’t want to just drag her to bed. I mean—”

“You have the hots for this Ruth but don’t want to screw her? Maybe you’re not into women after all. It could be a platonic crush or something like that.”

“Trust me, it’s more.” A blush worked its way up Danielle’s cheeks. “When I’m close to her, I feel like an idiot. I don’t know what to say, and as soon as she’s talking to me, I have to fight the impulse to giggle like a schoolgirl. All I want right now is advice on how to behave around her.”

Danielle’s description was as foreign to her as if she were talking about the logistics of spaceflight to the moon. “I’m not sure I’m the right person to ask about this. Sounds like you have real feelings for this mechanic, but I’ve got no idea about relationships.”

“You can’t really mean that. What about Sherry?”

Shit! “That’s, um, different.” And how different it was. Before Danielle could ask more questions, Madison said, “So, what’re your plans with this Ruth?”

Another blush crawled up Danielle’s neck and spread over her face.

Wow, if she’s reacting this way just talking about her, how does she react when talking to her in person?

“I, um, thought I could invite her to dinner.”

“Sounds good. Is she even into women?”

“Ruth?”

Madison rolled her eyes. “No, Oprah.”

Danielle nudged her, and both of them laughed. “Don’t know.”

“Well, before you start romancing her, you should find out.”

Madison got nearly every woman into bed regardless of their sexual orientation. But Danielle wasn’t her.

“How can I find out without asking her?”

“Dress up, go to the garage, and look for her reaction.”

“Why should I dress up before going to the garage? Wouldn’t that be suspicious?”

Jesus! “Nah. Just bring your car in for a repair during the evening and pretend to be going on a date afterward.”

“Ruth starts at six in the morning and leaves at four in the afternoon. Besides, my car is just fine. And even if it weren’t, I do little repairs on it myself, as you well know. The only time I visit is to see my folks.”

“Okay. Now I get why you need my help. I guess I’ll pay your dad a visit next week and check your babe out. See how she reacts to my flirting.” As soon as she’d said it, she wanted to take her words back. What was up with her? She didn’t walk around offering help to just anybody. But this isn’t just anybody. This is Danielle. That didn’t change the fact that it was kind of ironic that Madison of all people would be helping Danielle to hook up with a woman.

“No!”

Madison blinked. “No?” For once she had offered help, and Danielle had said no?

“I don’t want you to flirt with her.”

Madison rolled her eyes. “Fine. Then, um, invite Bill and all the mechanics to a party, and I’ll take a look at her. I’m sure you can find something to celebrate here.”

Danielle opened her mouth as if to protest.

“I’ll just look, I promise.”

This plan was perfect. A party would give her a chance to introduce Sherry to this part of the family. And given that Bill seemed to talk to her grandmother frequently nowadays, the witch would hear about Sherry in an inconspicuous way. This would all work like a charm.

“In two weeks, it’s Mom’s birthday. That would be a great opportunity, and Mom would love it.”

“Problem solved. Just text me the details when the party’s arranged.”

“Thanks, Mad. You’re a lifesaver.”

Following Sherry’s suggestion to make her transformation more believable, she said, “Please call me Madison.”

“Madison?” Danielle spoke her name as if trying it out. “Why?”

“I’m too old to be called Mad, don’t you think?”

Danielle’s lips twitched. “To be honest, I always liked your real name better.”

“Really?”

Red curls bounced up and down when Danielle nodded.

Why hadn’t she ever told her? “So what about your offer? What’s it about?”

Danielle slurped her caramel milkshake and grinned like the cat that got the canary. “I want you to join my business, help me to hire new staff and to get some repairs done.”

So it was about money after all. “How much do you need?” She glanced around. “The place looks fine to me.”

“It’s not about the money. At least not entirely.”

Aha. Sure.

“I want… The water pipes are really old. This part of the coffee bar”—she gestured toward where the guests were sitting—“was renovated three years ago, but the kitchen is still the one they installed in the sixties. It’s not urgent, but I really would like everything to be up to date.”

Before Madison could think of how to respond, Danielle continued, “But that’s just one part. Honestly, it’s all pretty overwhelming. Aunt Eileen told Dad that you’re out of work right now, so I thought you might like to join me here.”

Madison squinted at her. If Danielle knew that she wasn’t working, why had she asked about it earlier? “Just to make sure I understand you correctly, you want me to join you, and by join you mean inject money into the business and help with the management?” She was a Fielding. Why should she do any work at all? Responsible people have responsibilities. You’ll never be believable as a housewife or stay-at-home mom, so that means you need a job, Janice’s words echoed in her mind as an unwanted answer to her rhetorical question. But was being the owner of a coffee bar a good enough responsibility? At least it would be more responsible than having parties and sleeping around, her mind supplied.

“You would help the Archer to shine in new splendor.”

“It looks shiny enough to me. Besides, getting my hands on something is not really my style.” She waggled her eyebrows. “Now getting my hands on someone…” But even while Madison said it, she had to admit that Danielle’s offer had some appeal. It was the perfect addition to her plan with Sherry. A nice little family, a job… It was all too good to be true.

“So, you don’t want to join me?”

Madison took a long sip while trying to see the coffee bar as if for the first time. No way in hell would this place make enough money for two people to make a living—or would it? Most of the tables were occupied.

Grandmother Eileen wanted her to behave like an adult? Fine. Danielle was probably the only person in the world who wouldn’t try to take her to the cleaners, so however this all turned out, it would be a win-win situation. She took a deep breath and extended her hand. “You’ve got yourself a partner.”

Danielle’s eyes widened almost comically. “Really?” She grabbed Madison’s hand and shook it vigorously. “Woohoo!”

In the following hour, they talked about the details, and Danielle showed her the kitchen and the bar area.

The more Danielle talked about her plans for the Archer, the more Madison warmed to the idea of making this place even more special than it already was to her.

When they said their goodbyes, Danielle’s wrapped her arms around Madison’s shoulders as if it were the most natural thing in the world.

This time, Madison tensed only for a second. Danielle’s hugs had always been special to her, and when her eyes fell shut on their own accord, she didn’t fight it. Instead, she returned the embrace and just enjoyed it.

When Danielle stepped back, they were both smiling.

“I’ll send the contract over to Janice tomorrow.”

“Sure. I’ll come by in a few days to help.” Not when they opened at seven in the morning, of course. Maybe at ten or eleven.

Chapter 9

Madison’s hands turned into fists. God, how she hated hospitals. This one in particular. Everything had started here. No. This is where it ended.

When the doors of the elevator opened with a quiet ping, Madison jerked, then shook her head and berated herself for her foolish behavior. That was the past. She took a deep breath, hoping it would banish the memory of her mother. Pale. She had been so pale.

Stop it! The present was all that counted. She stepped into the hall and walked toward Jake’s room.

Her bachelorette life was over for the foreseeable future. For sure, Sherry, Jake, and especially Rita Mae would take over the place before she knew what was happening. But she had insisted on them moving in, so it was too late to complain about it now. She would have to keep reminding herself what was at stake.

She stopped in front of the boy’s room. Behind a door like this, she had seen her mother for the last time. Don’t think about it. Just…don’t…think…about…it. Forcefully, she knocked and entered without waiting for an answer.

The boy was sitting on the bed, but Sherry and Rita Mae were nowhere in sight. “Hi.” His broad grin revealed a big gap in his upper front teeth.

Was this gap new? Madison closed the door. “Um, hi. Where’s your mother?”

“Mom went with Rita Mae to the cafeteria.” He whispered loud enough for her to hear. “Rita Mae was pretty grumpy because you’re late. She and Mom are getting us lunch.” He dangled his legs, distracting Madison. “I didn’t wanna go because Nurse Flea promised me some ice cream.”

Nurse Flea? Madison pressed her lips together. Okay, so maybe she had overslept, but it wasn’t as if the hospital was kicking them out any moment. “I’m here now.” She took a seat at the table next to the window. This day was getting better and better. How the hell was she supposed to pass the time until Sherry and Rita Mae came back?

Jake came over and sat in the chair opposite her.

They stared at each other.

When his scrutiny became unbearable, she asked, “What?”

Jake’s gaze flew to his knees. “M…Mom said you’re a friend and…and that we’ll move in with you.”

“Yeah, and?”

The boy’s knees bounced up and down.

When the boy remained silent, Madison said, “You want to ask something, so shoot.”

Jake looked up at her, then down again, tears in his eyes.

A lump formed in her throat. Okay, maybe she could have worded that a little bit nicer. She remembered all too well how intimidated she had felt when Grandmother Eileen had berated her during most of her childhood. Not that it felt any better nowadays when the witch talked down to her.

She took a deep breath and said the first thing that came to her mind. “Don’t be afraid. Just ask.”

“I…I didn’t imagine them to be like you, but…” Keeping his head down, he looked up at her shyly. “Are you an angel?”

Madison snorted. “Why the h…Um, why would you think that?”

The boy blushed. “Well, Rita Mae always says that when you wish for something very, very much, sometimes God sends down an angel to make it happen.”

The answer felt like a punch in the stomach. “And…” She cleared her throat. “What have you wished for?”

He swallowed. “Mom was always sad, and Rita Mae told me it was because she worried so much. She didn’t tell me, but I’m sure it was because of me. Because I was sick so often. And then I prayed to God so that he would send us an angel to make me healthy.” He looked up to her and then hastily down again as if afraid of her. “And that Mom doesn’t need to work so much anymore, oh, and for the leak in the trailer roof to be repaired.” He beamed at her. “But a real apartment is even better.”

The lump in her throat and the fist in her stomach formed one huge knot and stole her breath away.

“And then,” he continued, “you came. And Mom said you paid for the doctors and the medicine and now we get to live with you. So I thought, you might be an—”

The door opened, and a nurse entered with ice cream in her hand.

Jake jumped up, Madison totally forgotten. “Oh, great! Thanks, Nurse Flea.”

Relief washed over her at the distraction. She wouldn’t have known how to answer him. Madison had never been good with kids; she didn’t even like them. Not now, and not when she had been a kid herself. Not after losing all her friends when she’d moved in with her grandparents.

The nurse smiled and handed him the ice cream. “Here, Jake. We’ll miss you. You’re such a nice kid.” She caressed his head and turned to Madison. “And you are?”

“Madison Fielding. His mother is my partner.”

“Oh, I s—”

The door flew open again. This time Sherry entered, followed by Rita Mae. When she saw Madison, she came to an abrupt halt. “Madison.”

“Um, yeah. Hi.”

The nurse looked back and forth between them as if watching a tennis match.

She’s thinking we’re a couple. Do something! Madison jumped out of her chair, hurried over to Sherry, and bent down to give her a chaste kiss on the cheek. Hopefully, Sherry wouldn’t freak out. But when Madison straightened, Sherry was staring at her as if she had two heads.

If this was her reaction to Madison’s platonic touch, she probably would totally lose it as soon as she learned where she’d be sleeping from now on.

Madison pointed to the two battered suitcases. “That’s all?”

Sherry nodded, still dazed.

“Great. Well, then, let’s go.” Usually, she wouldn’t even have thought about carrying the luggage, but she needed something to do right now. Anything. With both suitcases in hand, she marched ahead.

Madison opened the door to her apartment and entered first. “Here we are.”

A long hall, ending in a huge room, stretched out in front of them. Sherry couldn’t believe her eyes when she saw the city skyline ahead.

“Wow!” Jake shouted and ran toward the floor-to-ceiling window.

“Baby, I told you not to run.”

Jake stopped and almost fell in the process. With his head hanging, he shuffled back to them. “Sorry, Mom.” Instead of going to Sherry, he went to Madison, who had just put the luggage down.

With a slight hesitation, he shoved his hand into Madison’s, who in return eyed him as if he might have a deadly disease.

Jake seemed oblivious to it; he smiled at her and asked, “Will you show us around?”

Rita Mae tromped past Sherry and took Jake’s other hand. “First we’ll bring the suitcases into our rooms.”

Madison, who had wrapped her hand around Jake’s, maybe in an unconscious gesture, let go of him and took a huge step away. “Sure.”

Sherry closed the front door. The click of it sounded in her ears strangely like prison doors. At least that’s how she imagined it to sound. A feeling of being trapped surged through her.

“I’d like to unpack first. Are you gonna tell me where, or should I start right here?” Rita Mae pointed to the spot where she was standing.

Madison rubbed her hands on her pant legs as if the luggage—or Jake—had made them dirty.

Or was she sweating? Was she as nervous as Sherry?

Madison looked at Rita Mae and pointed to a door to their right. “That’s your room.”

Rita Mae opened the door but left her suitcase behind. “Oh, Lord!” She covered her heart with a hand. With the other, she pulled Jake into a half embrace.

Madison peeked in. “Something wrong? I was told everything had been prepared.”

“Wow, it’s huge,” Sherry whispered. With three steps, she had entered the room, which was more spacious than Rita Mae’s whole trailer.

When Rita Mae kept staring, Sherry whispered, “It’s fantastic.” And it was. A desk stood beside a queen-size bed at the wall. A huge window gave a view over the city, the skyline impressive. On the other side of the room was a closet three times the size of her old shower stall. Never ever would Rita Mae be able to fill it up completely.

Rita Mae let go of Jake, ran back into the hall, and grabbed her suitcase. Enthusiastically, she shoved one of two sliding doors of her closet open. “Oh my. All my things from the moving boxes are already in there.”

Madison wore a bewildered expression. “What did you think would happen when the guys from the moving company picked up your things?”

Jake jumped up and down. “Can I see our room now?”

Sherry caressed his soft hair. “Of course. But just if you stop jumping. You know what the doctor said.”

Pouting, Jake nodded.

Rita Mae opened her suitcase on the bed and dug into it with vengeance.

They watched her until Madison said, “We should go to see Jake’s room now.”

“Yeah!” Jake ran back into the hall.

He was so excited. Sherry was too. Well, nervous was probably a better description. But if Jake continued like this, he’d risk some bleeding, as the doctor had warned them repeatedly. In her sternest voice, she said, “Jake Franklin Miller, I told you not to run.”

Jake stopped dead in his tracks and slowly turned back to her. Focusing on his feet, he mumbled, “Sorry.”

Sherry walked to him, went down on one knee, and searched his face while smoothing a loose strand of hair out of his handsome face. “I’m just worried. Right now, running and jumping is too dangerous.” He was looking so sad that she engulfed him into a tight embrace.

Madison looked away. “Opposite Rita Mae’s room is the guest bathroom. That’s what you’ll use.”

Sherry let go of Jake and stood. “Okay.”

Jake took Sherry’s hand. “And where’s our room?”

Madison took a few steps and stopped at the next door on the right. “That’s your room, Jake.”

He let go of Sherry’s hand as quickly as he had grasped it and opened the door.

Two feelings sprung up instantly: happiness about Jake’s incredibly beautiful room, yet also the unsettling feeling that this room was obviously meant only for him. He’d love to have his own space. It would be a first for him. And she didn’t want to be one of those mothers who couldn’t let go. But sleeping without him would be…lonely.

Sherry took a deep breath and focused on what this all meant for Jake instead of her. Taking it all in, she had to smile at the little red bed in the form of a racing car to her right. The huge room had Spiderman wallpaper all over, and it made the room surprisingly warm and friendly. Next to a red-and-blue children’s desk was a trunk in the same colors but decorated with racing-car stickers.

“Look, Mom!” Jake repeated while he touched everything he could get his hands on as if he needed to make physical contact with it all to believe it was real.

Sherry’s eyes burned suddenly, and she couldn’t stop the tears from falling.

Jake turned back to her, and his smile faltered. “Mom?”

“I’m just so happy for you, baby,” she croaked out. Never would she have been able to afford something like this for him. But now it was real. Who knows for how long? a quiet voice in her mind supplied. Even though she always tried to face reality head-on, she refused to think of the time when this arrangement would come to an end. God, what am I doing to him?

Jake rushed toward her and wrapped his tiny arms around her waist. “Please don’t cry, Mom.”

Sherry wiped the tears away with the back of her hand. “It’s fine. Really. Sometimes you cry because you’re happy, you know?” They weren’t just happy tears, but for Jake’s sake she shoved all dark thoughts away for the moment. She couldn’t do anything about them anyway.

In the past, all Jake had known were the sad kind of tears. As much as she avoided crying when he was close, Rita Mae had told her that he’d seen her shedding tears more than once.

Madison cleared her throat to get their attention.

When Sherry looked over Jake’s head at her, Madison shifted her weight and inspected her shoes as if made uncomfortable by this emotional display.

Madison signaled to the trunk beside the desk. “There’re toys inside.”

Sherry gaped. The only toys Jake owned were two teddy bears and two little toy cars.

“Really?” Jake let go of Sherry, opened the trunk, and stared down, his eyes widening. “Mom!”

Sherry inspected the trunk that was filled to the brink with Lego, toy blocks, toy cars, and every other kind of toy suitable for a boy of Jake’s age. She turned to Madison and waited until she met her gaze. “Thank you.”

Jake rushed past Sherry and threw his hands around Madison’s hips. “Thank you so much.”

Madison stood rooted to the spot. “Um, yeah. You’re welcome.” For a second, it seemed as if Madison wanted to shove Jake away, but then she placed her hands on his shoulders and patted him awkwardly.

It was a strange feeling watching them. Gratefulness fought with distrust and worry that Madison could hurt Jake. But there was something else as well. Jealousy?

Before she could fathom her emotions, Jake let go of Madison to run back to the trunk and his toys.

“You can play with your toys now, but later you have to put everything back in the trunk, you hear?”

With an expression of concentration, he examined the rollability of one of his new toy cars on the soft carpet.

“Shall we?” Madison asked.

Sherry nodded and bent down to give Jake a kiss on the forehead. She didn’t really feel comfortable going alone with Madison, but she was mature enough to know how silly that was. Besides, it made no sense taking Jake away from his paradise now. “Baby, I’ll show you my room later, okay?”

He didn’t even look up to her. “Okay.”

Sighing, Sherry followed Madison out of the room and closed the door.

At the end of the hall, Madison gestured to her left. “This is the open kitchen, as you see.” She pointed ahead. “The living room.” Why are you commenting on the obvious, idiot? The boy had totally distracted her with his touchy-feely behavior, but that was no reason to be so nervous. Probably the true reason was her apprehension of Sherry’s reaction about their sleeping arrangement. She wasn’t happy about it either. Especially as Sherry didn’t seem to be open to a roll in the hay every now and then. But the boy would need to think they shared a bed. How else was he supposed to tell everybody that she and Sherry were a couple? If someone asked about their relationship, it had to appear to be rock solid. Besides, her cleaning lady Carmen would become suspicious if she ever found Sherry sleeping in Jake’s or Rita Mae’s bed.

“…fortune.”

“Huh?” Madison focused on Sherry, who was facing the floor-to-ceiling window. “I mean, excuse me?”

Sherry turned back to her. “I said the rent for this apartment has to be a fortune.”

“The place is mine. I don’t pay rent. Just running expenses. Don’t ask me how much. My financial adviser takes care of these things.”

Sherry looked at her for an uncomfortably long time. Finally, she nodded. “Where’s my room?”

Madison pointed toward the bedroom.

Sherry stepped past her and opened the door. “Wow. You could make two huge rooms out of it.”

True. The bedroom was the biggest room in the apartment beside the living room.

Sherry went inside and turned a few times around as if trying to take it all in.

Madison tried to see it through her eyes. The king-size bed, the huge walk-in closet, and the two spacious white cabinets opposite the bed. The view through the window was the same as Jake’s and Rita Mae’s, though.

“Where does this lead to?” Sherry pointed to the door to her left. “Your room?”

“No. It leads to the master bathroom.”

“And where do you sleep?”

Time for the bomb to drop. “Here. This is my bedroom. Ours now.”

Instead of complaining, or crying or maybe even shouting, Sherry just stared at her. After what seemed to be hours, she said in a voice that left no room for argument, “I’ll sleep in Rita Mae’s room.” Not giving Madison a chance to say anything, she added, “I understand that your interior designer expected me to sleep here, but we’re alone now, so we can stop pretending. About sleeping together, I mean.”

Anger surged through Madison with unexpected vengeance. “Do you think I would attack you like an animal while you’re sleeping?”

Sherry blinked repeatedly. It seemed that she hadn’t expected this reaction from Madison. “N…no. But it’s not necessary for me to—”

Madison strode over and came to a halt just within her personal space. Using the few inches of height she had over Sherry to her advantage, she looked down at her. But before she could decide on what to tell her, a realization hit her. How likely would it be that the boy spoke with anybody about their sleeping arrangements? She could keep the bedroom to herself, and Sherry would be happy too. “Fine.”

Sherry hadn’t backed off and still held her gaze as if trying to prove she wouldn’t budge. “Fine,” she echoed, and turned to the door.

“Carmen, my cleaning lady, comes in on Tuesdays and Thursdays at eight. Make sure to be out of bed by then.”

Without looking back to her, Sherry nodded and left the room.

Madison let the breath she hadn’t been aware she was holding escape.

The phone on one of her nightstands rang, ending all her thoughts about this recent encounter. She grabbed the phone and said gruffly, “Yeah?”

“Hello, Madison. It’s me.”

No further introduction was needed. “Hello, Grandmother.”

“Oh, the joy in your voice is truly touching.” A quiet clacking came through the line. Probably from the ice cubes whirling around in her grandmother’s ever-present glass of scotch. “What is this nonsense that has just come to my ears?”

Someone from the hospital had contacted her? “What are you talking about?”

“Someone has moved in with you? Several someones? And Flinton informed me, you’d arranged for a money transfer because you want to become a joint owner of a bar. That has to be a joke, right?”

Grandmother Eileen truly had her spies everywhere. Not that it was a bad thing in this case. But she really needed a new financial adviser. One who could keep his mouth shut. “Yes, Grandmother. That’s correct.”

“Are you playing hotel for your party friends now?”

“No, Grandmother.”

“You’re a shame for the Fielding name and I will—”

“Grandmother, my partner and her son have just moved in. And I have a housekeeper now who has her own room here and takes care of things.”

Silence.

Then a thump and a clack, probably caused by her glass being put down on one of her oak tables. “P…partner?”

“Yeah. I’m in love.”

“The girl from the morning when I—”

Why the heck did everybody think it was this stewardess? “No. Sherry, my partner, has a son.”

“A son?”

Madison had to grin. Who would have thought this would be so much fun? “Yes. Jake. He’s six.” Hopefully.

“You’re making fun of me.”

“No. I’m really in love. As much as I tried to ignore my feelings for her, I just couldn’t. You were right that I was a disgrace to the Fielding name. Sherry convinced me that it would lead me nowhere if I kept having parties all the time. That’s why I decided to join Danielle, and by the way, it’s not a bar but a coffee bar.”

Grandmother Eileen made a strange noise, something between a moan and a squeak before calling for Jonathan.

A few seconds later, the sound of glass on glass followed by the splash of fluid filtered through the line. Without a doubt, her butler had refilled the scotch. “Let’s start this again. You have a girlfriend now? Since when?”

This was the weak point in her story. “It’s all still fresh. I’ve been interested in her for a while now, but instead of confessing my feelings to her I escaped into the arms of strangers who didn’t mean anything to me.”

“Just like your grandfather. God bless his soul.”

The witch believed her? Who would have thought this would go so smoothly?

“So you told her about your feelings a few days ago, and she moved in with you on a whim? With her child?”

“Um, yeah. It turned out she’s just as much in love with me as I’m with her. But—”

“Madison, she’s just after your money. Trust me. Which family is she from? Do I know her?”

“No. She’s a waitress and—”

Grandmother Eileen sucked in a breath. “A waitress? You really are just like your grandfather.” After a few seconds of dramatically breathing into the receiver, she continued, “I want to meet her. I expect you tomorrow for dinner.”

So soon? She would have to instruct Sherry as to every detail. Her whole plan depended on Sherry’s performance. The thought made her dizzy. “As you wish.”

A hum escaped her grandmother. “And now tell me about this nonsense with Danielle. Bill told me she bought a bar a few months back and not a coffee bar. And why do you of all people care about this? That is below your standing.”

Maybe this once she might have agreed with her grandmother, but it was the right thing to do. Especially given the fact that she didn’t really have a choice where to work at this point. And working seemed to be a must for this plan to succeed. “You didn’t want to give me a job at Fielding Inc., so what did you expect me to do?” Trying to sound sincere, she added, “I just couldn’t stand sitting around doing nothing any longer.”

Breathing filtered through the line. Then Grandmother Eileen said, “However, I don’t think that a bar is the right place for you.”

“It’s a coffee bar, Grandmother.”

“Whatever that is. But you doing anything productive at all is an improvement, I guess.”

That was what she had to say to this? How could she have ever thought her grandmother would give her a position at Fielding Inc.? What do you care? It’s not like you want to spend your days in a stuffy office anyway.

“So, until tomorrow then.”

“Yes, Grandmother.” Madison spoke to herself, as Grandmother Eileen had already hung up.

Chapter 10

»Krgh…phoo…krgh…phoo…«

Sherry buried her face deep into her pillow.

»Krgh…phoo…krgh…phoo…«

Argh! Slowly, she peeked from under the pillow to the bedside clock on the nightstand. A few minutes after three a.m.

»Krgh…phoo…krgh…phoo…«

How could a single human being snore so loudly? Sherry stared over to Rita Mae, who turned from her back to Sherry’s side.

A noise somewhere between a grunting and taking a breath rattled through the darkness before the snoring continued in its obnoxious rhythm.

Sherry hid her head under the pillow once more to drown out the noise. To no avail. God knew, she was used to not getting much sleep, but with how this was going, she wasn’t about to get any.

»Krgh…phoo…krgh…phoo…«

Enough! Sherry sat up, grabbed her pillow and the extra blanket lying on the foot of the bed, and fled Rita Mae’s room. When the door was closed, the silence was heavenly.

But then the muted snoring penetrated through the door. Wow. No wonder, I couldn’t sleep.

Drowsy, she lumbered to the living room and cleared some decorative pillows from the couch. Afterward, she tried to get comfortable—or at least as comfortable as the cold leather couch allowed. Even at five foot six, she had to bend her legs to fit. She would have expected Madison to have a bigger couch.

When she finally found a halfway comfortable position, she marveled at the breathtaking view from the twenty-fifth floor. The lights of the city shone like in a fairytale.

But this was anything but a fairytale. If someone would have told her that she’d be pretending to be the partner of some rich lesbian brat one day, she probably would have laughed about such a bad joke.

But here she was. And laughing was about the last thing on her mind.

“Mom?”

Sherry sat up. “I’m here.”

His favorite teddy pressed to his chest, Jake shuffled toward her.

“Why are you awake, baby?”

Jake let go of the teddy with one hand and rubbed his eyes with the back of this hand. “Can’t sleep.” When he reached the couch, he crawled under Sherry’s blanket into her open arms. “And then I wanted to come to you, but I was afraid that the monster would get me if I did.”

She caressed his soft hair. “Monster?”

He pointed at Rita Mae’s room.

Sherry tried to hold back laughter but failed. “Honey, that is no monster. Rita Mae’s snoring. That’s all.”

Jake kept silent.

The couch was much too small for them both, but Sherry lay down, taking him with her anyway. A little cuddling was exactly what she needed.

Jake snuggled closer and sighed.

“But you’ve got to go back to bed in a bit, okay?” Sherry asked after a while.

Deep breathing was the answer.

“Aww, my baby.” She kissed his hair.

A few minutes later, she pulled herself up and carried the still-sleeping joy of her life to his room. Careful not to wake Jake, she placed him and his teddy in the bed and covered him. After giving him a kiss on the forehead, she went to the door. There she allowed herself the pleasure of watching him sleep. The little nightlight close to the bed revealed his relaxed features.

When her eyelids became heavy, she forced herself to leave. If she wanted to get any sleep at all tonight, she had to get back to the couch.

Tomorrow—or, to be more precise, later today—they would drive over to Madison’s grandmother’s house. That Madison had waited to tell her this until they said good night made her even more nervous.

Madison had made it clear how important the upcoming evening was. And it was true: for Madison this was merely about a crazy amount of money, but for Sherry this was about everything. Only if she played her role convincingly would Jake keep his room for a while. And only if she proved to be a good actress would he be able to go to a good elementary school and be medically taken care of.

She straightened, determination surging through her. She would do whatever it took to pretend that Madison was the love of her life.

Hopefully, she could be convincing. There was no plan B.

Not for the first time, Madison glanced over to Sherry in the passenger seat and took in her bare knees and slightly windblown hair. The boutique she had called last minute had done an excellent job. From her description alone, they had found the perfect dress for Sherry and delivered it within two hours.

The huge tip had been well deserved. It fitted splendidly, not only in size but also in style.

For the probably fiftieth time, Sherry tugged on the shiny red cocktail dress. “Is this really the right outfit for dinner at your grandmother’s?”

Madison rolled her eyes. “And if you ask me a thousand times, the answer will still be yes. Why do you think I’m wearing a cocktail dress too?”

She hated wearing dresses, but Grandmother Eileen insisted that Madison wear one when she came for dinner. But for once she couldn’t be angry about it. After all, Sherry filled this dress out quite nicely. Okay, maybe a few pounds more would have been nice, even if just on her chest. A smile tugged on her lips. The hairstylist and the makeup artist had truly outdone themselves. Sherry was breathtaking tonight.

Hold your horses. Yes, she’s cleaning up nicely. So what? You’re constantly surrounded by beautiful women and manage not to rant about it, so calm the hell down here.

After an uncomfortably long silence, Sherry said, “You look, um, nice.”

“You think so?”

Sherry shifted on her seat but focused on her folded hands.

She didn’t get Sherry. And why was she even trying to? Madison never cared much about what others were thinking.

They neared her grandmother’s property. Time for a last-minute reminder. “Just to be sure you haven’t forgotten anythi—”

“I haven’t,” Sherry interrupted her. “I’ll try to hold your hand or establish some other contact with you at all times. I’ll let you do all the talking, and when I don’t know the answer to a question, I defer to you or compliment the interior.”

“Exactly. And whatever you do, don’t—”

“Start any kind of political conversation.”

Madison let her tense breath escape. “Okay. I think we’re good to go.” She stopped the car in front of the iron gate, which in its closed position displayed a huge F in the middle. Pressing the button to the intercom, she said her name, even though the security team had without a doubt identified her already through the camera.

“Good evening, Ms. Fielding,” a male voice filtered through the speaker before the gate opened.

“Why does your grandmother have such extensive security?”

“Paranoia.” Madison drove up the driveway to the main building. “I don’t think she really needs it. But if you listen to her talk, you’d think there’re criminals everywhere, waiting to rob her.” She drove around the huge ugly fountain in front of the stairs that led to the main entrance and stopped.

Jonathan hurried toward them.

Madison unclipped her seat belt. “Just go with the flow and do what I tell you. Then all will be fine. Oh, and stay seated. I’ll open the door for you.”

Sherry nodded. She gave a series of blinks and her hands were trembling.

Oh my. If she didn’t get a hold of her nerves soon, all would be lost.

Jonathan opened her door. “Good evening, Ms. Fielding.”

“Good evening.” She stood and sprinted around the car before Sherry could forget her instruction and open the door herself. With more force than necessary, she yanked open the passenger door and extended her hand for Sherry to take.

For a moment Sherry stared at her hand as if it were on fire, then she laid her clammy hand in Madison’s and got out of the car. “Thanks.”

Out of the corner of her eye Madison saw a movement at the curtain of the parlor. Time to get this show on the road. She closed the door and whispered into Sherry’s ear, “My grandmother is watching us. Whatever you do, don’t flinch or tense. I’ll nibble on your neck now and then I’m gonna kiss you.”

Sherry swallowed. “Okay.”

Madison laid her hands on Sherry’s small hips and pulled her closer. Slowly, so as not to scare Sherry, she started nibbling on her neck. Her grandmother had seen her making out with many other women, so it was the most logical thing to do now.

With her lips close to Sherry’s neck, Madison smelled the enticing fragrance of vanilla.

Sherry tensed. But at the same time Sherry’s hands wandered from Madison’s shoulders to her neck, as if she wanted to feel Madison even closer.

Good. She’s game. Madison grazed her lips over the soft skin and felt the thundering pulse under it. After a few seconds, she backed off ever so slightly to look at Sherry.

Sherry’s expression was serious and…determined? With just a slight hesitation, she pulled Madison’s head down until their lips were touching.

Madison’s eyes fell closed.

Sherry’s lips were warm, soft, and trembling.

A spark surged through Madison’s body, and she pulled Sherry even closer until their breasts touched. Madison moaned. Sherry smelled and felt so damn good. It took all of Madison’s willpower not to open her mouth.

Sherry moved her lips against Madison’s but didn’t make any sound.

When her legs became wobbly, Madison pulled back. With her mouth agape, she stared at Sherry, who avoided her gaze.

Madison didn’t understand anything anymore. How was it possible that a fake kiss with this little waitress made her so breathless?

Madison jumped at the sound of Jonathan driving off with the car. She had totally forgotten where she was.

Sherry took a step back. Her artificial smile was in stark contrast to her eyes, which shone a luminous dark green and reminded Madison of a forest in the middle of a storm. An ice-cold hand took Madison’s and held on to it more tightly than necessary. “Sh-shall we?”

Madison couldn’t get a word out, so she merely nodded.

Side by side, they climbed the stairs to the main entrance.

Before Madison could ring the bell or Sherry could think about what had just happened, the door was opened by a woman in her mid-thirties wearing a maid’s uniform.

“Good evening, Ms. Fielding.”

“Hello, Sarah,” Madison said with a flirtatious smile on her face.

The maid blushed while stepping backward.

If Sherry wasn’t so busy trying to ignore her still-tingling lips and her rapidly beating heart, she probably would have questioned their strange interaction.

“There you are,” an elderly woman, carrying a half-full glass of brown liquid, exclaimed while strutting toward them in her long brown gown. “You may leave,” she told the maid without sparing her a glance.

“Good evening, Grandmother.” Madison’s greeting had been far warmer when speaking to the maid, who had now disappeared into an adjoining room.

Mrs. Fielding gave first Madison, then Sherry a derogatory glance. “So that’s her,” she said instead of a greeting.

Madison smiled, but it seemed forced. “Yeah. That is my Sherry.” She gave her grandmother a brief kiss on the cheek.

Nodding, to acknowledge Madison’s words or as an approval of the gesture, Mrs. Fielding stepped back. “Let’s go the parlor, so that you can introduce us properly. It’s not appropriate to do this in the entryway as if you want me to buy something from you on the doorstep.”

Madison entered the house, pulling Sherry with her. “Of course.”

Sherry glanced between Madison and Mrs. Fielding. Was it normal for them to talk about someone else as if they weren’t there? Confusion gave way to awe when she entered the huge entrance hall. An enormous golden chandelier hung from the high ceiling. Double doors led to other rooms on both sides. Stairs, looking like something straight out of Gone with the Wind, led to the first floor.

Madison squeezed her hand, and Sherry tore her gaze away from the detailed ornaments on the banister. “You coming, honey?”

Sherry forced a smile at the endearment and allowed Madison to lead her to the adjoining room, which was also huge and had high ceilings. How could anybody feel at home in a place like this? And what the hell was up with Mrs. Fielding? Compared to her, Madison was downright friendly and relaxed. That thought almost caused her to giggle, but she bit her lip to suppress any sound.

Mrs. Fielding looked like a much older version of Madison. Her hair was gray, but her eyes were the same piercing blue as Madison’s and their posture was similar.

Sherry had thought Madison’s bearing to be arrogant, but hers was nothing compared to her grandmother, who behaved like a queen.

“She’ll offer us scotch in a moment,” Madison whispered into her ear, causing a tickling there. “Accept. She hates people who don’t drink with her.”

“But I don’t drink alcohol,” Sherry whispered back.

Madison’s eyes widened.

Mrs. Fielding stopped in front of three couches in a half-circle facing a chimney. She sat down on one couch beside the chimney and pointed to the opposite one. “Sit. Would you like to join me for a scotch?”

Mrs. Fielding hadn’t addressed Sherry even once, but that didn’t bother Sherry as much as the thought that she was going to have to drink alcohol. Madison should have told her earlier. The smell of alcohol alone left her feeling nauseous. And for good reason.

“Yes, please.” Madison sat down on the appointed couch and pulled Sherry down with her.

Sherry lost her equilibrium. Flailing with both arms, she just managed to avoid landing in Madison’s lap. Instead, she landed awkwardly next to her.

Mrs. Fielding took her time to sip her scotch and fixed them both with a cool glance.

From somewhere behind them, the man who had greeted them outside appeared with a silver tray in his hands. Two glasses, both containing two fingers of scotch, were on it.

Madison took both glasses and handed one to Sherry.

Reluctantly, Sherry took it. The stinging smell pierced her nose. It took all her self-control to keep her face neutral.

“What was your name again?” Mrs. Fielding asked, addressing her for the first time. “Sheryl?”

“Sherry Miller, ma’am.”

Instead of standing up and coming closer to offer her hand, the elderly woman just tilted her head. “Eileen Fielding. But you know that already, of course.” She looked around as if searching for something.

Maybe her manners? This thought caused a smirk she couldn’t suppress.

“Dinner will be served soon, so I’ll make this quick,” Mrs. Fielding said.

Madison’s hold on hers tightened, but her passive expression hadn’t changed.

“Sheryl…”

“Sherry.”

“Whatever. I’m sorry to tell you this, but just a few days ago I found Madison after a rampant night of partying with a woman she had obviously spend the night wi—”

“That’s a lie!” Madison said forcefully.

“Is it? Do you honestly mean to tell me that you didn’t have sex with that young girl who I met in the entrance of your utterly trashed apartment?”

Madison gulped down half of her scotch.

This was going from bad to worse. “I know,” Sherry heard herself say.

Madison and Mrs. Fielding stared at her.

“Y-you know about it?”

“Yeah,” Sherry said. “Madison told me about it. But that was before we decided to settle down as a family.”

“But that was just last week!” Mrs. Fielding’s eyes became slits, and she leaned back. “What a coincidence,” she said in a conversational voice. “Here I go telling Madison she has to grow up or I will disinherit her, and just a few days later she shows up with a fine little family at her side.”

Madison drained the rest of the glass.

Oh God, she’s found us out. No, she couldn’t and wouldn’t accept that. They hadn’t lost yet. “How can you insinuate Madison would do such a horrible thing?” Sherry said in a hopefully believable outraged voice.

“Oh, it seems you don’t know Madison the way I do. I’m sorry to have to break it to you, but Madison is just using you.”

“That’s enough!” Madison slammed the glass onto the little oak table separating the couches. “Sherry is a wonderful woman. I fell in love with her a long time ago but was afraid to act on my feelings. I tried to ignore my emotions and fled into the arms of other women, who didn’t mean anything to me. But…” She turned to Sherry. “I can’t and I don’t want to live my life without her anymore.”

Sherry had to blink at the passion shining in Madison’s eyes.

Madison looked over to her grandmother. “If you want to disinherit me, go ahead. Of course I want to inherit the company, but I would never use Sherry to pretend for you.” She looked back at Sherry. Something flashed in her gaze. “I love you, Sherry. You know I’ve made mistakes in the past. I can’t change them. But I’ll try my best to be a good partner to you in the future.”

No one but Jake had ever told Sherry that they loved her. Did Madison, who paid her for this ridiculous charade, have to tell her now? Sherry’s eyes burned. Get a grip! This was about Jake. Convincing. She had to be convincing. Hesitantly, she let go of Madison’s hand and placed her still full glass on the table. Then she caressed Madison’s cheek with the back of her hand.

Madison froze but stared deeply into her eyes. For a second, it seemed as if there was a hint of vulnerability there, but it was gone before Sherry could be sure.

I have to say it too. Jake. I have to think of Jake. “I…I love you too,” she said and let her hand fall. Her stomach clenched, and she felt as if she would become sick.

Madison sat there as if hypnotized. Then she took Sherry’s face in both hands and gave her an incredibly tender kiss.

It took all her willpower not to bolt. She closed her eyes and let it happen.

When Madison drew away, Sherry breathed a sigh of relief that it was over. But for the Fielding women it probably sounded like a happy sigh. Hopefully.

Mrs. Fielding drained her glass. “We’ll see where this leads to.”

Chapter 11

It was almost eleven when they arrived back home. Not that the apartment felt even remotely like a home to Sherry.

“Finally.” It was the first word Madison had said since leaving her grandmother’s mansion. Was it because she felt as exhausted as Sherry did?

After her evening with Madison’s grandmother, she also hadn’t been in the mood to talk, but the silence on their way back had felt uncomfortable nonetheless.

When they passed Rita Mae’s room, the all-too-familiar snoring buzzed through the closed door. Without hesitation, Sherry went to the couch, ready to put the pillows to the side in order to make room for her bedding while tracking Madison’s movement toward her bedroom.

Madison paused in front of the door. Shaking her head, she took hold of the door knob, hesitated, then growled and turned. “Do you really want to spend a second night on the couch?”

With one pillow in hand, Sherry froze. “You know about—?”

“I got myself something to drink last night and this snoring”—she pointed toward Rita Mae’s room—“would wake up the dead. So I wasn’t surprised you’d fled.”

Sherry threw the last pillow onto the coffee table. “Why ask, then?”

Madison kept silent as if she didn’t know how to answer. But then she stepped up to Sherry. “That’s kind of ridiculous, you know? I slept on this couch more than once and know how it makes you feel the morning after. On the other hand, my bedroom has a nice comfy bed with enough room for even three people. Believe me, I’m not too excited about sharing my bedroom, but it would be just stupid of you not to—”

Sherry put her hands on her hips. “Why?”

“Huh?”

“Why are you asking me to join you if that’s not what you really want?”

Instead of answering, Madison turned toward the floor-to-ceiling window and stared at the skyline as if the answer lay somewhere out there. “Maybe I just want to be nice?” It sounded more like a question than a statement. Who was she asking—Sherry or herself?

As much as she would have preferred the comfort of Madison’s bed as opposed to the tiny couch, Madison’s answer was anything but convincing. After their shared kisses at Mrs. Fielding’s and with what she had learned about Madison’s past Casanova-like behavior, Sherry was very much aware of Madison’s sexual exploits. It made sense now why she needed Sherry and Jake in her life to appear even halfway convincing as a responsible person.

But one thing had to be made clear to Madison: Sherry would not become one of her conquests. “No, thanks. I prefer to sleep here.”

A confused expression gave way to an angry one. “Do you really think I would try to ravage you the minute you come into my bed?” Before Sherry could think of an answer, Madison said, “Do whatever you want. I don’t care. But do something about the dark circles under your eyes. You’re supposed to be happy.” She stomped toward her room and closed the door behind her.

Rubbing her neck, which still ached from spending last night on the couch, Sherry stared at the closed door. Did Madison really have her best interests at heart? She had to admit that she felt really drained and could use a good night’s sleep.

They were both adults, and at the end of the day, Sherry was nothing more than some kind of employee to Madison. Besides, if Madison wanted sexual encounters, she could find more attractive and more willing women in a heartbeat.

So what was she waiting for?

Madison had not even made it to the bathroom when there was a knock on the door. Had Sherry changed her mind? “Come in.”

It was indeed Sherry, who slowly opened the door, her gaze following the trail of clothes Madison had left behind while undressing. “Oh, I’m sorry, I—”

Madison looked down at herself. All she was wearing were panties and a bra. Was Sherry disturbed by the disarray on the floor, or was she a prude?

Reluctantly, she picked up her clothes. “Changed your mind?”

Sherry looked over her shoulder back to the living room as if she wasn’t sure herself.

With the stack of clothes in hand, Madison stopped in front of Sherry. “So?”

Sherry nibbled on her lower lip. It was kind of sexy. After a long exhale, she closed the door and walked past Madison as if wanting to get more distance between them. “Thanks for offering to share your bed with me.”

So she finally had come around. “Whatever. I’m going to take a shower.”

“Okay. And I…um, will get ready in the other bathroom and get my pillow.”

Instead of an answer, Madison strolled to the bathroom, closed the door with her hip, and threw the clothes into one corner. Yawning, she undressed, turned on the water, and stepped under the hot spray. Her eyes fell closed.

She didn’t get Sherry. Not that she usually would have cared, but Sherry was such a contradiction. One moment, she acted like a shy little bird, and the next she was kissing Madison almost senseless before reverting to being timid. But at least she had played her role perfectly at Grandmother Eileen’s. That was all that really mattered.

When Madison, wrapped in a huge towel, stepped back into her bedroom a few minutes later, her tiredness vanished when she saw Sherry lying in her bed.

Sherry had pulled her covers up to her chin and gave Madison’s every step her full attention.

Madison strolled to her dresser to get boxer shorts and a T-shirt. For Sherry’s sake, she wouldn’t sleep naked tonight. After she found her sleepwear, she loosened the tie to let the towel fall to the floor.

“Jesus, Madison!”

Chuckling, Madison dressed, picked up the towel to throw it onto the dresser, and went to bed. “Yeah?”

“I don’t need to see you walking around naked, you know?”

“Do you now?” At Sherry’s stern expression, Madison sighed. “Then don’t look.” After slipping under the covers, she faced away from Sherry. “Seriously, what’s your problem with seeing me naked? You’re not into women, so…”

Sherry shifted, and when Madison mirrored her, they were facing each other.

“I just don’t feel comfortable with it. Isn’t that enough?”

Even though it was fun to tease Sherry, it wasn’t worth fighting over. “It is.” She shifted to lie on her back and stared up at the ceiling. “Shall I turn off the light?” When Sherry didn’t answer, she bent toward the light switch above her nightstand.

“No. Wait. Please.”

Madison let her head fall back onto the pillow. “Okay.” Did Sherry want to start talking now after saying nothing in the car?

“I thought we should talk, after you were quiet on our way back.”

“I was quiet?” She turned back to her. Their faces were now uncomfortably close, but Madison refused to back off first. “You were the one who didn’t say a word on our way home.”

“Because I thought that’s what you wanted.”

Madison grinned. “And I thought you did.”

Sherry’s lips twitched, but then her expression became serious. “Do you think your grandmother bought it?”

“Hell, after that kiss in the driveway, even I almost bought it.”

Sherry blushed.

Madison giggled. “Are you embarrassed?”

“No.” She focused on her hands. “After all you pay me well enough to be convincing.”

“Oh, trust me, you were.”

Sherry cleared her throat. “So you think she believes your story?”

“Yes.” Without Sherry’s intervention things, would have gone downhill pretty fast, but now everything was just perfect. “You saved my ass back there.”

Silence.

Then, “Good.” As if struggling with herself, Sherry started nibbling on her lower lip again.

Madison couldn’t help finding it kind of cute. “Anything else you want to say?”

The nibbling stopped. “Your grandmother drinks a lot, doesn’t she?”

Madison sat up, leaning against the headboard. “And you drink nothing at all. Why?”

Instead of answering, Sherry rolled onto her back. After a while, she said, “I don’t care for alcohol.”

It wasn’t as if Madison was a good judge of character, but even she could tell there was more to it. “We have to know important things about each other, to be convincing, so spare me the bromide?”

“The what?”

Madison rolled her eyes. “Just tell me what this is all about. Are you a recovering alcoholic or something?”

“No.”

When nothing else seemed to come, Madison said, “Shoot.”

“My mother is an alcoholic, okay?”

“Okay. Just don’t rip my head off.”

If looks could kill, Madison would have been dead.

Sherry wiped her face with both hands. “I’m sorry. To see how your grandmother drank one glass after the other…” She shook her head as if trying to get rid of the memory or maybe memories this scene had brought back.

“So, your mother is an a—”

“I don’t like to talk about my mother.”

To her surprise, Madison caught herself saying, “I can relate. I also don’t like to talk about my grandmother, but—”

“But what?”

“As I already said, we need to know important things about each other to be convincing in our roles.” It was the truth, but just partly. Madison was curious about Sherry’s story. Not that she would have ever admitted that.

After staring at the ceiling for a while, Sherry said, “For many years, you wouldn’t have known my mother was an alcoholic. She hid it well.” Sherry sat up too and leaned against the headboard.

“She was never what you’d call mother of the year. But over time it got worse. One day, she just stopped going to work and started using welfare and what I brought home for booze.”

“What you brought home?”

“Since I was twelve, I always had a side job. As a babysitter or papergirl. When I was sixteen, I started working in a grocery store close by.” Sherry’s eyes became dim. “Anyway, she drank her damn booze all day. When I was younger, she at least hid it from me, but later she didn’t care anymore. Not even about the various guys who kept coming and going.”

“What about your father?”

Sherry shrugged. “Never met him. I’m not even sure my mother knows who he was. He was one of many in a long line.”

When Sherry didn’t continue, Madison asked, “What happened next?”

“What do you mean?”

“What happened with you and, um, Jake?”

“Oh. Not much to tell. A few months before I finished high school, I dated Jimmy. He was a colleague in the grocery store I worked at.”

“He became your fuck buddy?” As soon as she’d said it, she wanted to take it back.

Sherry’s expression hardened.

“I’m sorry.” She really was. “I didn’t mean to—”

Sherry compressed her lips. “It’s important we know more about each other to be convincing.” She smiled, but it didn’t reach her eyes. “I felt very much alone back then. Jimmy told me I was the love of his life and that he’d always be there for me.” Sherry’s shoulders slumped. “Looking back, it’s hard to see how I could have been so naïve.”

“Did you love him?”

“I told myself I did, but deep down I knew better. I…” Her voice broke. “I just didn’t want to be alone, I guess.” A single tear ran down her pale cheek, but Sherry seemed oblivious to it.

Madison swallowed against the lump in her throat. She just couldn’t bear to see a woman cry, least of all Sherry, even though she couldn’t say why. Without taking time to think about it, Madison put one arm around Sherry’s shoulder.

Sherry flinched. She turned and wiped away another tear that had fallen. “I don’t need your pity.”

Sherry’s rejection hurt. “And you won’t get it, trust me,” she said, harsher than intended. “So, what happened next?”

Sherry looked over to Madison. The deep sadness in her eyes took Madison’s breath away.

“I slept with him. Twice. Just twice. But I got pregnant.”

“And then?”

“He ended it. Said the baby wasn’t his and that I was trying to trick him.”

“Bastard!” Maybe Madison used women, but she never pretended otherwise, and she couldn’t get them pregnant. If she had been able to do so, she would have used condoms so she wouldn’t have to live with the consequences. Don’t go all high and mighty here. In his place, you most likely would have done the same. Madison found a loose thread on the blanket and used both hands to rip it off. “Bastard,” she repeated, but it felt strangely as if she meant herself this time.

“No. If not for him, I wouldn’t have Jake.”

Madison’s gaze snapped up. Was she serious?

Sherry smiled, and this time it reached her eyes. “Jake is a gift. He means the world to me.”

Madison regarded her. How did it feel to love someone like that? “How did your mother react when you told her about your pregnancy?”

Sherry closed her eyes as if trying to shut out the memory of it. Looking at Madison, she said, “When I was six months pregnant, I couldn’t hide it any longer. Just a few weeks before getting my high school diploma, my mother kicked me out, saying she didn’t want to have to care for my little bastard too.”

Madison’s jaw dropped. Grandmother Eileen wouldn’t have been thrilled had something like that happened to Madison either, but at least she would have thought that the Fielding succession was secured. Her grandmother would have probably offered the father of the child a huge chunk of money to marry Madison, and that would have been the end of it.

Coming back to Sherry, she asked, “What did you do?”

Sherry shrugged. “I worked more hours and got myself a little room close by. The landlord didn’t care that I wasn’t legal as long as I paid my rent on time.” She sighed. “It was hard because I didn’t want to drop out of high school, but I still needed to get enough hours of work to pay for everything. Mostly, I worked in the evening and at night.”

Underage, pregnant, and without prospects but still determined to finish school. Wow.

“And I made it,” Sherry finished her story. “I got my diploma.”

She really had made it. Would you have been able to do that? Madison suppressed a snort. No way in hell.

“What about your parents?” Sherry asked after a while.

The question hit Madison like a punch to her stomach. Sherry’s story had somehow ripped apart her defenses. Pictures, noises, and smells from the past flooded her.

The weak, clammy hand holding hers squeezed.

“I…” Her mother pointed to the water on the nightstand.

Some drops splashed over the rim when Madison grabbed the glass hastily to give it to her.

After a few sips, her mother gave her the glass back.

Madison placed the glass on the nightstand and covered her mother’s hand with her own. “What should I do, Mom?”

Her mother smiled, but it seemed forced. “My little angel.” She moaned, then took a deep breath. “Don’t you worry. Everything’s gonna be all right.”

“Yeah, Mom.”

She licked her dry lips. “Can you do something for me?”

“Anything.”

Again her mother smiled. This time little wrinkles formed around her eyes. “Look out for Dad. He—” The wrinkles around her eyes deepened as her face contorted in obvious pain. She moaned until it turned into a whimper.

“Mom!”

“Madison!”

Sherry’s loud voice pulled her out of her memory.

Madison blinked. “Huh?”

“If you don’t wanna talk about it, it’s o—”

“My mother died when I was nine.” It felt as if someone else was saying those words. “In the same hospital where Jake was.”

After a few seconds, Sherry said, “I’m sorry.”

She made a dismissive gesture with her hand. “Things like that happen.”

Sherry touched her arm, but Madison ignored it until she let go.

Whether she wanted to or not, Sherry had to know everything. A real partner would have known. “I’m a complete orphan.” She swallowed against the lump in her throat. “About half a year after my mother’s death, my father put a bullet in his head.” Madison was grateful that her voice held when she added, “He just aimed the gun at his head and pulled the trigger.” With her hand, she re-enacted it.

“Oh God. That…that’s horrible.”

The memory of her grandmother coldly telling her what had happened and then just walking away, leaving her crying alone in her room, sucked the air out of her lungs, but she forced herself to continue. “My mother had internal bleeding when she was pregnant with my little brother. But they didn’t know. When her contractions started, they thought everything was normal. They took their time to prepare her for a C-section. Too much time. When they finally realized what was happening, it was too late.”

Sherry seemed to hold her breath.

“Both died. My brother hadn’t gotten enough air while my mother was bleeding to death, so he didn’t make it either.” Madison wiped a tear from her cheek and turned away from Sherry, not wanting to show her any weakness.

She had said enough. More than enough.

Sherry covered Madison’s hand with her warm one. “I can’t even imagine how that must have been for you.”

The touch felt too intimate. But as much as she wanted to, she couldn’t draw away. Instead she heard herself say, “While being pregnant with me, she had obviously had…I don’t know, ripped something. My father told me after my mother’s death over and over again that it had been my fault.”

Sherry reached out with her other hand for Madison as if wanting to embrace her, but she withdrew before making contact. “You know that isn’t true, right?”

Madison shrugged. A tiny part of her was disappointed Sherry hadn’t hugged her. Don’t be ridiculous. She’s a stranger and you don’t need her or anybody else. “My father died after lying for ten days in a coma.” She freed her hand of Sherry’s touch and switched off the light. Without Sherry’s warm hand on top of hers, her skin felt uncomfortably cold. “Let’s sleep.” She slid down and turned away from Sherry.

Instead of doing the same, Sherry asked, “And then you went to live with your grandmother?”

It seemed Sherry didn’t want to let her off the hook. “Yeah.” Again her mouth seemed to have a life of its own when she added, “I think she blames me for the death of my mother and my baby brother, as well as my father’s suicide.”

“You can’t honestly think that.”

Madison turned back to her but couldn’t make out her expression in the darkness. She had said too much. “It doesn’t matter what I think. Let’s sleep now.”

Finally, Sherry slid down as well. “You can’t run away from the past, just like you can’t run from the present. Wherever you go, your memories follow you.” It sounded more as if she was talking to herself than to Madison.

An ex-waitress getting all philosophical? Really?

“I tried, you know?”

“You tried what?” Slowly, Madison’s eyes adapted to the darkness, and she could make out Sherry’s tense features.

Their gazes met.

“Running away from my life. When I was younger, I lost myself in books. Stories from faraway places or non-fiction books, which needed all my attention.” She hugged herself. “I told you that I didn’t have the nicest childhood. I forgot to mention that my mother is one of those alcoholics who turn violent after drinking too much.” Barely audible, she added, “I’m not even sure if she’s still alive.”

It wasn’t surprising that Sherry obviously hadn’t had any contact with this bitch. Then Sherry’s words registered completely. “She hit you?” Grandmother Eileen had never raised a hand to Madison. She had chosen other methods to discipline her. Perhaps a slap in the face wouldn’t have been so painful.

Sherry kept silent.

Madison was tired, mentally and physically, but maybe this was the only time Sherry would open up to her. Softly, she said, “Tell me. For our roles.” A quiet voice in her head told her that was just part of the truth, but she ignored it.

For a few seconds, Sherry watched her. Eventually, she said, “I’m not sure what hurt more. The beating or her telling me all the time how worthless I was and how much I had ruined her life.” She sighed. “I hadn’t thought of that in years, but when you told me about your dad and your grandmother, it came back to me.”

Unsure what to say to that, Madison kept silent.

“I don’t pretend to know how you feel about your parents or your grandmother, but I know how it feels to be blamed for everything bad in someone’s life.”

They came from different worlds. Their experiences weren’t anything alike. But… Don’t think about it. That will just give you a headache.

She was spared finding the right words to answer when Sherry turned away and wished her a good night.

“Night,” Madison mumbled, closing her eyes. She had revealed too much about herself. How had that happened?

Even though she felt bone-tired, sleep took a long time to come.

Chapter 12

When Sherry opened her eyes, Madison’s face, relaxed in sleep, was just a few inches away. She jerked back. Her heart beating wildly, she slipped as quietly as possible from under the sheets and tiptoed to the door. With her hand on the doorknob, she gazed back. The peaceful expression on Madison’s face was in stark contrast to the haunted woman Sherry had spoken with last night. It wasn’t as if she knew Madison intimately now, but her arrogant behavior seemed to be at least partly a façade.

Sherry shook her head at her weird morning thoughts and left the bedroom.

Not even half an hour later, she stepped into the living room and sat down on one of the barstools in front of the counter separating the living room from the kitchen. “Good morning.”

Rita Mae flipped a pancake with a flick of her wrist. “Good morning.” Her voice was neutral, but curiosity shone in her dark brown eyes. “You spent the night in Madison’s bedroom?”

Why did that sound so naughty? “She offered, and I didn’t want to impose on you any longer.”

Rita Mae let the pancake slide on a stack of others, turned the stove off, and put the pan to the side. “Impose?”

“Well, it’s your room and—”

Madison entered the kitchen. “You snore.”

Great. Madison was really tactful. When Rita Mae tilted her head in question, Sherry held her thumb and forefinger an inch apart. “Maybe a tiny little bit.”

Madison snorted but had the decency to try covering it with a cough while grabbing a pancake from the stack.

Rita Mae hit Madison’s fingers. “Take a plate and sit down if you want to have breakfast.”

When Madison gaped at her, Rita Mae’s eyes widened as if she had just now realized she had berated and hit her boss. “Um, I mean—”

Sherry giggled. Seeing them staring at each other like this was just too funny. “I propose we all sit down to breakfast.”

“I don’t eat breakfast.” Madison rolled one pancake up and took a bite while strolling out of the kitchen.

“Could have fooled me,” Rita Mae mumbled.

“Where’s Jake?” Sherry asked instead of commenting.

“He’s playing in his room.” Rita Mae lowered her voice. “He came by last night, talking about a monster roaring out of my mouth.” She paused. “Okay, now I get it. Anyway, he was searching for you.”

Her urge to ravish the heavenly smelling pancakes disappeared. I should have told him where I was going. And then? She couldn’t imagine Madison being happy to be woken by Jake crawling into bed with her. Besides, he had been asleep when they’d come home, so how could she have let him know?

“I told him you were still out and brought him back to bed. Not even one story and he was back asleep.” She clicked her tongue. “Now, this morning was an entirely different affair.”

Sherry covered her face with both hands. She was a terrible mother.

“Because your side of the bed was empty and your pillow gone, I figured out you’d slept in Madison’s room, but…why?”

Her suspicious tone made Sherry look up. “You don’t think I—”

“Oh, no.” Rita Mae took a rag to clean an invisible spot from the counter. “I’m just sorry you had to escape to her.” She hesitated. “It has to be weird to share the bed with a lesbian.”

Not weird, but Madison’s sexual orientation certainly had made her hesitate to accept her offer. She didn’t know what to make of Madison’s, or even her own, behavior. Not just about their sleeping arrangements, but about yesterday in general. How had she been able to kiss Madison like that, and why didn’t she care more that she was pretending to be a lesbian?

When Rita Mae kept watching her, Sherry forced herself to stop pondering the questions. “It was okay. Really.”

“What happened last night?”

“Happen? Nothing.” Her heart thumped faster. “We had to, um, kiss in front of her grandmother’s house.” And what a kiss it had been. Heat surged through her body just thinking about it.

Rita Mae furrowed her brow. “Had to?”

“Yeah. Oh, and then there was another kiss, but—”

“Wait a minute. You had to kiss her? Twice?” She shoved a bowl with fruit to the side to be able to lean closer. “Do tell.”

Sherry rubbed her burning cheeks. “Not much to tell.”

“Liar. You’re red like a tomato.” Rita Mae chuckled. “I want the dirty details. How did it feel to kiss her?”

“No dirty details there. It was just a kiss. Well, two kisses.”

“Aha.”

“Jesus, Rita Mae, it’s not as if you’ve never kissed. You know how it is.”

“I never kissed a woman. You, on the other hand…” When Sherry kept silent, she asked, “So, what’s it like? Is it very different from kissing a man?”

Oh yeah! Madison’s lips had been incredibly soft and tender. So different to anything she’d ever known. “It was certainly nicer than Andy’s slobbering.”

Rita Mae laughed. “Even a bulldog kissing you wouldn’t be that bad, I guess.” Sobering, she added, “Madison is attractive enough, but it still had to be weird. I mean, she’s still a—”

“Woman,” Sherry ended the sentence. “Of course it was weird, but I just tried to ignore it. What else could I do?” To be honest, all thoughts had fled the minute her lips touched Madison’s. That wasn’t really a bad thing. It was her job, and she was being well paid to do it. And it wasn’t as if she had enjoyed kissing Madison. Not really.

“How would you describe it?” Rita Mae asked. “I mean, the difference between kissing a man and a woman?”

“Rita Mae, this is part of my job. Like if I was an actress. I didn’t feel anything, and I wasn’t really paying attention to how it felt.” Okay, that was a lie, but there was no way in hell she would admit it had felt good. Good? Maybe that was too strong a word for it, but it could have been worse.

“You’re no actress.” Tilting her head, Rita Mae studied her thoughtfully. “You like her.”

Sherry shifted on the suddenly uncomfortable stool. “I wouldn’t go that far, but she isn’t as bad as I had originally thought in the beginning. Don’t laugh, but I think she’s been out of luck until now.”

“Ha! I wouldn’t mind being out of luck like that if it would bring me as much money.” Rita Mae gestured from the kitchen to the living room. “Look around. She’s a spoiled brat who’s never had to grow up. She has everything she could wish for and doesn’t even see it.”

“Does she really have everything?” Madison was wealthy, but that didn’t make her a happy woman. Happy people didn’t spend their life having meaningless encounters with strangers and running from party to party. The urge to defend Madison surprised her. But she couldn’t help it—she had to. “She’s giving us a great opportunity.” That Sherry had more or less been forced into this was a flaw she chose to ignore for now.

“I’ll go get Jake so that we can have breakfast.” Not that she was all too eager to eat after their conversation. Without giving Rita Mae a chance to ask more questions, Sherry stood and hurried to the hall.

Madison was at her coat rack, rummaging through one of her jackets. “Oh, um, hi.”

“Were you eavesdropping on us?”

Madison’s hands fell to her sides. “I doubt your chitchat was that interesting. I was just, um, searching for something.”

“And what, if I may ask?”

“You may not. But if you must know, I was searching for my, uh, wallet.”

Sherry took a step toward the coat rack, reached into Madison’s jacket, and pulled out the wallet that had visibly bunched out the inner pocket. “I don’t appreciate people eavesdropping.”

“I wasn’t…” Madison pressed her lips together. “This is my apartment. I can stand around or do whatever I please whenever I want to. And by the way, you can tell Rita Mae that she gets paid by me. I expect to be treated accordingly.”

Not dignifying her words with an answer, Sherry stomped past her to Jake’s room. Holding the doorknob, she couldn’t keep her mouth shut any longer and turned back to her. “Before I knew you, I had no idea why anyone would have to pay someone to have a family. Now I get it.”

“Good for you.” Madison whirled around and marched to her bedroom.

“Now I get it,” Madison grumbled, echoing those stupid words while heading toward the Archer. Who cared what Sherry thought? A week ago, she’d called a run-down trailer her home. Barely getting by, working two jobs as a waitress and in a grocery store, she had been unable to care for her sick son.

Madison opened the door to the café and took the surprisingly full place in. Almost all seats were occupied, and a long table holding a breakfast buffet took up one wall. The aroma of coffee and fried food mixed with the scent of freshly baked goods.

That was all hers now. Well, at least half of it was.

Danielle smiled when Madison approached the bar. “Hi, favorite cousin.”

“I’m your only cousin.”

“Details, details.” Danielle pointed to the man who had served them a few days back. “Jack, do you remember Madison?”

“Sure.” He bent over the bar and stretched out his hand. “Nice meeting you, boss. Danielle’s told me a lot about you.”

Danielle? It wasn’t the Fielding way to be so informal with your employees. But it seemed to be how things were working here.

Madison took his hand. “Pleasure’s mine. You can call me Madison, if you want.”

He nodded. “What can I bring you?”

She took a seat in front of the bar. “I’m good.”

Danielle threw a dishtowel over her shoulder. “Please tell me you’re here to help.”

“Actually, I thought we could talk a little bit. Plan the party for your mother and organize a few things.”

Danielle blew a curl out of her face. “Did you take a look around? We’re packed and we’re still two staff short.”

“Then hire some.”

Danielle pursed her lips. “Wow, thanks for the great advice. Why haven’t I thought of that?”

Jack giggled while putting two caffe latte on a tray and running off with it.

Madison didn’t even have time to berate him for being so disrespectful.

“Either they’re not reliable,” Danielle said, breaking into Madison’s thoughts, “or they want more money that I—um, I mean we—can pay. Or they’re just bad.”

“Then call the job service.”

Danielle sipped on a glass of water. “You must think I’m a total moron. Right this moment, waitress number four sent from the job service should be here. Do you see her? Because I don’t.”

Madison stood. How difficult could it be to take people’s orders and bring them whatever they had requested? “In that case, I’ll help.” A little bonus was that if Grandmother Eileen found out she was now serving other people, she would crumble to ashes. A grin formed on her lips. “Where do we start?”

“I guess the safest would be to start with the coffee machine.”

Madison stood and strolled around the counter. That couldn’t be that challenging. She came to a halt in front of a huge beast with controls that looked like they were out of a space shuttle. “What’s that?”

“The coffee machine.” Danielle sighed. “Listen, didn’t you tell me Sherry is a waitress?”

“Uh, yeah. Why?”

“Do you think she could help us out sometime? I really would like to work with professionals for a change.”

“Sure. I’ll ask her. And maybe we leave this thing here”—Madison pointed toward the coffee beast—“for her.” She searched for something she could do without getting a headache. “What about beer? I can draw beer, and I know how to mix a few cocktails.”

Danielle wiped a few lose strands of hair out of her face. “That’s great, but at this time of the day I doubt a lot of people will order alcohol.”

“Oh.”

“But you could take care of the counter. When someone orders something, you write it down and tell Jack or me. And then you can do the decoration or something.”

Decoration? Whatever. She pushed up her sleeves. “Okay.”

Twenty minutes later, she was drenched in sweat.

Danielle’s orders were bombarding her and Jack as if the Archer was three times as full. Jack was constantly handing her beverages from the space ship for her to dump chocolate powder on top of. She also added a package of sugar and a cookie. Not two or three, just one, as Danielle and Jack told her repeatedly. It wasn’t as if a customer would be complaining about an additional cookie, so what was their damn problem?

Danielle leaned against the bar, observing Madison, who filled a glass of Coke. “How’s Jake doing, by the way? Any problems after the surgery?”

“No, he’s fine.” At least as far as she knew. When she’d left the house, he had seemed healthy. You should ask Sherry about him sometimes. These are the things you should know.

“Great.” Danielle took the prepared drinks, put them on a tray, and was gone.

“Hey, Madison,” Jack called over. “You know how to do a Virgin Colada?”

“I’m an expert when it comes to virgins and Piña Coladas. Does that count?”

Danielle came behind the bar and slapped Madison’s shoulder. “Don’t taint my Jack here with your dirty jokes.”

Jack chuckled while taking the pineapple juice to show Madison how to prepare it.

Madison was decorating the non-alcoholic cocktail with a slice of pineapple while Jack was over at the coffee machine when a customer stopped in front of her. “I’d like to have a caffe latte with hazelnut syrup, please.”

Madison turned away from the woman and rolled her eyes. “Jaaack!”

Chapter 13

A clicking noise at the front door was followed by a long, dramatic groan.

Sherry looked up from their jigsaw puzzle.

Jake seemed to have heard it too, because he jumped up.

“Slow down,” Sherry warned.

“But, Mom—”

“Don’t ‘mom’ me. Sit back down. It’s probably just Madison.”

At that moment, Madison stepped out of the hall, rubbing her eyes, and shuffled toward her bedroom without sparing them a glance.

Rita Mae looked up from her crocheting. “Are you okay?” she asked loud enough for Madison to hear.

Doorknob already in hand, Madison turned. “Yeah. Sure. There were just lots of things to do at the Archer, and I had to help out.” With drooping shoulders, she dragged herself to the couch. Moaning, she sank onto it.

“Archer?” Sherry asked.

“Oh, didn’t I mention it? I’m the co-owner of a coffee bar close to the city park.”

Madison owned a coffee bar and had actually lifted a finger to help? “No, you haven’t told me that.”

“Well, now you know.”

What she didn’t know was… “What exactly is a coffee bar?”

“That’s like…” Madison moved her hands as if trying to explain a complicated scientific concept. “Well, imagine a coffee shop, a diner, and a bar having a threeso—” Madison glanced at Jake. After a moment, she cleared her throat. “It’s a combination of all three, kind of.”

“Sounds interesting,” Rita Mae said.

Madison nodded and let out a long breath. “But it’s a lot of work, I can tell you. At four, we were finally relieved by the late shift.” Piercing Sherry with an uncomfortably intense gaze, Madison added, “We’re short of staff.”

Was that her way of asking if Sherry could help out?

“You’re a waitress…or at least you were until recently.”

Bingo! “You want me to work in your coffee bar?”

Rita Mae, who sat on the opposite end of the couch, didn’t interrupt her crocheting while asking in a casual tone, “How much does it pay?”

“Pay? I p—” Madison looked over at Jake. “We’re a couple. And Sherry is sitting around all day anyway.” She pointed to the jigsaw puzzle.

“It’s fine, Rita Mae,” Sherry said. “Jake will start school next week, so I’ll have plenty of time in between dropping him off and picking him up.”

“Why would you do that?” Madison shook her head. “Rita Mae can do that.”

Sherry nibbled on her lower lip. “I’d rather take him myself, at least for the first few days.”

Madison regarded her thoughtfully. “Okay. This is how we’ll do it. You and I will take Jake to school starting next week. From there, we drive directly to work. And we finish in time to pick him up again.”

“Yippee!” Jake shouted. “You’re both going to take me. That’s so cool.”

Cool was about the last word Sherry would have used to describe Madison’s suggestion, because it meant Madison would spend more time with Jake even if it was just while sitting in a car together.

Madison ignored Jake’s outburst and said, “But I need you to help out tomorrow.”

“That’s fine, but I need a few hours to go to the mall to get Jake some new clothes for school before next week.”

“Good. Remind me later to give you some money for the mall. You should also get yourself something.”

Sherry was too stunned to answer. She hadn’t expected Madison to be this generous.

Rita Mae cleared her throat. “Paying for new clothes is one thing, but you’ll give Sherry a little pocket money for her effort at your coffee bar, right?”

Sherry could have kissed her. It felt wonderful to have someone fight for her even though she would have helped Madison out with her coffee bar without compensation.

Madison rolled her eyes. “Fine. I’ll ask what Danielle pays her staff. Sherry will get the same.”

Sherry didn’t like being talked about as if she weren’t sitting right here, but her happiness at getting even more money to save for the time after this arrangement prevailed.

Madison stood slowly as if she had worked twenty-four hours in a row. “I need a shower.” After a few steps, she halted. “By the way, how’s Jake? After the surgery, I mean.”

“I’m great.”

Madison ignored him and looked at Sherry.

Had someone cloned her at the coffee bar? Since when did Madison care about Jake’s well-being? “Fine. He’s doing fine.”

Madison nodded and walked into her bedroom.

Madison sat down on the opposite end of the couch from Sherry. Why wasn’t Sherry in bed even though everybody else was?

“What?” Sherry asked quietly.

“I’m just sitting here. That’s all.”

Sherry focused on the floor-to-ceiling window, presumably to watch the lights chasing away the darkness.

Madison moved closer. “Why are you not in bed?”

“I didn’t know I was expected.”

Jesus, what’s up with her? “You can do whatever you want.”

Just when Madison had decided to get up, Sherry asked, “Can I?” Sherry moved closer to her until their bare legs were touching.

The contact sent a tingle through her body.

“You forced me into playing your girlfriend. Do you think I like kissing you?”

Madison gaped at her.

“It doesn’t matter to you what happens with Jake or me. All you care about it your damn money.”

Sherry’s words—or was it her closeness—made her dizzy. “That’s not true. I…It does matter to m—”

“Hush. I know,” Sherry whispered before covering Madison’s lips with her own.

The kiss was so tender, almost tentative.

That made no sense. But Madison didn’t care right now. She wanted more than this careful kiss. Pulling Sherry closer with both hands, she kissed her passionately.

Sherry moaned, exploring Madison’s mouth hungry.

Madison’s body was on fire.

“God, I want you,” Sherry whispered and kissed her even harder.

Madison wanted to tell her that she could have her, but then she heard another voice. No, two voices.

“No, baby. You can’t,” Sherry whispered.

Huh?

“Please, Mom. I promise to be quiet.”

Madison’s eyes flew open to find herself in her dark bedroom. It had all been just a dream. But what a nice one. Her body was still buzzing with arousal. Sighing, she shifted to face Sherry and Jake, who stood beside Sherry’s side of the bed. “What’s going on here?”

“Great. Now you’ve woken Madison.”

Sherry sat up. “I’m sorry. Jake had a nightmare and—”

“Whatever.” It wasn’t enough that he’d woken her, but of all the moments, he had to choose this one. How did he know where Sherry was anyway? Had she told him yesterday? Or had he been walking around, maybe scared, searching for his mom until he found her here? Don’t think about it.

He snuffled, and a noise sounding like a suppressed whimper drifted over.

Sherry hugged him. “It’s all good, baby. Come on, I’ll read you a story.”

It was like a punch in the stomach. “Stop whining and go to bed,” her grandmother had told her more often than Madison could count. She hadn’t thought about it in years, but now it all came back to her. How she had crawled into her father’s bed almost every night after her mother’s death. And how he had moved away from her each time. And then how she’d had to move in with her grandparents after his death. Her grandfather had almost never been there, and the old bat hadn’t cared about her nightmares or her inability to sleep for months. The only thing she’d cared about, and still did, was her damn scotch.

Sherry stood and took Jake’s hand.

God, she was like her grandmother. The boy needed his mother, and she was standing between them. “Wait!”

Sherry turned.

“He can stay.”

Silence.

“He can sleep here if he wants.”

No reaction. Just staring.

Why was Sherry hesitating?

“Are you serious?”

What a dumb question. “I won’t repeat my offer. Take it or leave it.”

“Mom, please. I wanna to stay with you.”

Finally, Sherry nodded.

The mattress dipped slightly when she crawled with him under the sheets. Sherry now lay in the middle.

Their gazes met.

In the darkness, Sherry’s eyes shone a mysterious gray.

Sherry’s closeness reminded Madison of her dream. It made her hot and uncomfortable at the same time. She turned away from her but still felt Sherry’s body heat on her back.

Most people probably would have felt all cozy in this situation, but Madison felt trapped although their bodies weren’t even touching. What had she expected? She had made the decision, and now she had to live with it.

She punched her pillow into an acceptable form, lay back down, and forced her eyes closed.

“Thank you,” Sherry whispered.

Unsure how to answer, Madison chose to keep silent.

“Good night, baby.”

“Good night, Mom. Good night, Madison.”

“Yeah, good night, Madison,” Sherry repeated.

“Night.”

Chapter 14

“And don’t forget that you’re head over heels in love with me,” Madison whispered while holding the door to the Archer open for Sherry.

“Of course not.” Sherry walked past her and looked around. The Archer was about three times the size of Hank’s Diner, but she could make out only two people serving the tables even though the place was packed. They really needed help, and fast.

An attractive woman with red, curly hair tumbling over her shoulders stepped behind the bar with an empty tray, smiled at them, and waved them over.

Sherry turned back to Madison. “Is that—?”

Madison beamed. “That’s Danielle. The co-owner.”

Never had Sherry seen Madison smile so brightly. She likes her. Hopefully, they weren’t involved somehow, or their charade would be in jeopardy.

At the bar, Madison wrapped an arm around Sherry’s hips.

Sherry tried not to flinch. If only Madison had told her more about how she wanted to play this instead of staring out of the windshield without saying a word on their way to the Archer.

Danielle placed three cups on her tray. “Hey, you two.” Smiling, she extended her hand. “You have to be Sherry. I’m Danielle. It’s so nice to finally meet you.”

Sherry took her hand. “That’s me. Nice meeting you too.”

“Madison said you would help us today.”

Sherry peeled off her coat and shoved it at Madison. “How can I help?”

“Do you think you can handle the coffee machine?” Danielle nodded toward a place behind her.

“No problem. I’ve worked at a Starbucks once. They had a similar one.” She stepped behind the bar.

“Great. If you’d excuse me.” With her tray in hand, Danielle left.

The second person working here, a young man, smiled at Sherry in passing. “Hi, I’m Jack.”

“Nice name you have. I almost called my son that, but then it turned out to be Jake. I’m Sherry.”

He winked and then disappeared behind a double-swing door, probably one that led to the kitchen.

“What the hell do you think you’re doing?” Madison snarled.

“Huh?”

Madison leaned forward, their noses almost touching. “We’re a couple. Have you forgotten that already?”

“What—?”

“One hot chocolate and two white coffees, please,” Danielle called while rushing toward the bar. “For the hot chocolate, please use the huge yellow cups, and for the white coffee the white cups.” She pointed to the high rack over the coffee machine where cups with different sizes and colors were lined up.

“On it!” While getting the cups from the high rack, she asked Madison over her shoulder, “Want something too?”

Madison mumbled something unintelligible while stomping off toward a door marked private.

Sherry had just filled the cup with the hot chocolate when Danielle stepped up to her. She pointed at a few dredgers and explained the Archer’s decoration style.

When Sherry looked up, Madison was back, staring at them as if she had swallowed a fly.

What now? She waved Madison closer. “Do you know how to decorate the hot beverages?”

“A little,” Madison grumbled.

“She also doesn’t know how to handle the coffee machine,” Danielle said.

“I can show you.” Sherry pulled Madison closer. “Most professional coffee machines are more or less the same. These two buttons—”

“That could take a while,” Danielle interrupted. “Maybe save your lesson for another day when there’s more time.” She watched the door that Jack had disappeared behind. “I’d better check what’s taking Jack so long.” Quieter, she added, “He likes chitchatting with Harry in the kitchen. And they say women are the talkative ones.”

As soon as Danielle had left for the kitchen, Madison hissed, “First you’re flirting with Jack and then with Danielle. Have you forgotten that you’re my girlfriend?”

Sherry’s mouth fell open. Madison’s jealousy was ridiculous.

Jack rushed past them with a bowl full of heavenly smelling buns.

“Got nothing to say to that?” Madison asked.

Sherry gazed deep into her eyes to make sure she had her full attention. “I thought we’re just pretending—besides, I didn’t flirt with anybody. Can we do our jobs now? Please.”

Madison stared at her as if unsure how to answer.

There was no time for this childish behavior. When Danielle came back out of the kitchen, Sherry took Madison’s face in her hands, pulled her down, and kissed her.

Madison’s eyes fell shut with Sherry’s close behind.

So soft.

“Hey, lovebirds.” Danielle chuckled. “Wanna go back to work, or do you want to step into the office for a few minutes to get it out of your system?”

Sherry pulled back and let go of Madison’s face. Kissing her had been… No time to think about it. There’s work to do. She looked at Danielle. “I…” She ignored her wildly beating heart and cleared her throat. “I’m sorry. We just couldn’t help it.” Hopefully, that would be enough for Madison to show everybody what a happy couple they were.

When Sherry turned back, she saw that Madison’s eyes were slowly opening and a hint of a smile was playing around her lips. Had Madison enjoyed the kiss, or was she just a really good actress?

Sherry had no time to reflect about their kiss because Danielle said, “Well, then, get back to it.” Grinning, she added, “And before you get any ideas, I’m talking about the job.”

Madison halted in the middle of wiping down the bar with a rag.

Within one hour, Sherry had learned everything she needed to know about the Archer. Without spilling even one drop, she had brought some drinks on a tray in one hand and a plate of enchiladas in the other one to a table. Now she served them while smiling and chatting with the customers.

Madison couldn’t hear what was being said, but the customers—a young man and a woman—were smiling at Sherry.

She’s good with people. And she was a much better waitress than Madison. Not surprising giving her years of experience. But still… It was almost elegant how Sherry moved. Elegant? Madison shook her head at herself. Yeah, Sherry looked cute, especially the way her hips slightly swayed when she moved, but that had nothing to do with elegance. Maybe Sherry seemed classier because of her black trousers and her white blouse instead of the short waitress skirt she had worn at the diner. Yeah, that had to be it.

Sherry stepped behind the bar and stopped beside Madison. “Is it just my impression, or are things slowing down?”

Beside wiping down the bar and pouring or opening some cold beverages, Madison hadn’t done much, but even she had picked up that the Archer had gotten less crowded. “No, you’re right.”

Sherry leaned against the countertop beside the coffee machine and smiled.

Heat rushed through her. Almost as much as when Sherry had kissed her earlier. This was crazy. She never reacted this intensely to a kiss and definitely not to a smile. It had to be because of the dream from last night. Shards of memory still entered her consciousness from time to time—probably because she was practically living the life of a nun right now.

“Danielle is nice.” Sherry blew a strand of hair out of her face. “She said she can’t wait to introduce me to her parents.”

Ah, yeah, Lillian’s birthday party next week. She had totally forgotten about it. “I’m sure it’ll be a blast.”

Sherry looked at her funny. “Are you okay?”

“Sure. Why?”

“I don’t know, you seemed to—”

“Hey! Nothing to do, or what?” Danielle called from the end of the bar. “In one hour, the lunch crowd will be here.”

“Slave driver,” Sherry said but winked at her.

Danielle fanned herself with a tray as if she was a Southern belle in a voluminous dress. “Well, Ms. Sherry, I learned from the very best,” she said in a bad Scarlett O’Hara imitation, staring at Madison.

Madison ran toward her with a wet rag, trying to slap her with it.

Danielle jumped to the side and giggled. Pointing at Madison, she said, “See what I have to put up with?”

Sherry joined their laughter.

“Tell me everything, and don’t leave out a thing.” Janice took a sip of her cocktail. Like always, when they met at the Sheridon Bar, Janice had a Mai Tai.

Madison folded her hands behind her head and grinned broadly. “Couldn’t be better.”

Janice put down her cocktail. “You don’t mean to tell me that your plan is actually working?”

Madison nodded and took another healthy swig of her Sex on the Beach. Janice’s flabbergasted expression was so funny that Madison almost choked on her drink. “The day before yesterday, we had dinner at my grandmother’s, and she really seemed to buy it. Even Danielle thinks we’re head over heels.” Madison chuckled. “And she told me that being in love looks good on me.”

Janice slumped back in her seat. “I didn’t see that coming.”

“Obviously, or you wouldn’t have taken that bet with me.”

Janice drained her cocktail. “It’s not just that you both seem to be convincing. I mean everything. Out of nowhere, you get a call from your cousin after how many years? Overnight, she provides you with a job, and you’re actually working.”

“Hey, that sounds as if you think I’m lazy.”

“Maybe not exactly lazy, but come on. When did you ever really work for something?”

Not sure how to answer, Madison kept silent.

“So what changed? Is it all because of your inheritance?”

“Why else?” But she had to admit—if just to herself—that it felt surprisingly good to work at the Archer. She’d almost been disappointed when Danielle told her after the lunch crowd that she would be fine with Jack and Sherry and that Madison could take the rest of the day off. But being sent home was better than having to do paperwork.

“Why are you looking as if you just sucked on a lemon?” Janice asked.

“Ah, nothing.”

Janice scrutinized her as if trying to decide if she should press the topic, but then she let it go. “So, how is it, living with a kid?”

“Not much to tell. I barely see him. I have the feeling Sherry is trying to keep him away from me.”

Janice nodded but didn’t comment. “And what about Phil?”

“What about him?”

“He’s your best friend. Does he buy the story?”

“Seems so. He hasn’t met her yet, though.” Madison drained her drink. “On Friday, he’ll come by with the guys. But I haven’t heard from him for a few days. I’ve got no idea if we’re still on.” Maybe it was silly, but she felt embarrassed to admit to Janice that he hadn’t even called to ask how living together with Jake and Sherry was going for her.

Aside from one text message, where he’d told her he would be going on a trip to Tijuana with the guys, he hadn’t contacted her all week.

Janice covered Madison’s hand with her own. “Hey, you okay?”

“Sure.”

Janice looked doubtful but didn’t press the subject.

A few minutes later, they said their goodbyes because Janice and her boyfriend were due over at his parents’.

What a boring life Janice had.

Chapter 15

“Thanks again for your help, Sherry.” Danielle started the car.

“You don’t have to thank me.” Still, Danielle’s words felt good.

When Danielle had to stop at a traffic light, she said, “You’re different than I imagined a girlfriend of Madison’s to be.”

“What do you mean…imagined? I’m sure you’ve met some of her ex-girlfriends.”

Danielle’s eyebrows rose. “She didn’t tell you? Oh crap. I should have kept my mouth shut.” Her shoulders slumped. “Please don’t say anything to her, but as far as I know, you’re her first girlfriend.”

That made no sense. Madison was in her twenties.

The traffic light turned green, and Danielle steered the car across the intersection. “Don’t get me wrong, she’s never been shy about jumping into bed with women. But they were usually just one-night stands or flings limited to…you now.”

“Oh. So, um, how did you imagine Madison’s first girlfriend would be?”

“Fake.”

A laugh burst out of Sherry. She liked Danielle. “Anything else?”

“I imagined her to be a hussy. A bitch with silicon in her breasts, Botox in her face, and nothing but money on her mind.”

Sherry whistled through her teeth. “Wow. You really don’t think much of Madison, do you?”

“You’re wrong. Considering her upbringing, she’s actually a pretty decent human being.”

“Upbringing? You mean because she’s rich?”

“I was talking more about Madison losing her parents within months of each other and then her grandfather not too long afterward. I never met him, but I think compared to Aunt Eileen, at least he wasn’t mean to her.”

Danielle pressed down on the accelerator to barely make it through an intersection before the light turned red. “I’m not sure she told you, but we’re cousins. However, we only met when I was twelve and she was ten. Her grandfather had died shortly before. He and his brother, my grandfather, had some kind of feud for decades. My part of the family really doesn’t fit in with the rest. We don’t give a crap about money. My father’s a mechanic and would rather run his small garage than join my grandfather’s cigar trading company, no matter how rich it could have made him. Money can’t buy you love, right?”

Danielle’s rhetorical question left a bitter taste in Sherry’s mouth. Not love, but almost everything else.

“Anyway, because of this family feud, my folks hadn’t had any contact with Madison’s part of the family from even before I was born.” Danielle took a right turn at another intersection. Quieter than before, she said, “When I met Madison for the first time, I was totally shocked to see how Eileen treated her.”

“What do you mean?”

“Aunt Eileen paraded Madison around in expensive dresses as if Madison was a doll you just discard when you grow bored of it.” Danielle swallowed as if fighting against a lump in her throat. “I think that’s all Madison was for her: something to be shown off and then discarded. Whenever Madison was clumsy or didn’t do things the way Aunt Eileen wanted her to, she punished her.”

A gasp escaped Sherry. “Did she beat her?”

“Not that I know. But she always talked down to her. Told her she was a useless burden and a disgrace for the Fielding name.”

To think that Madison had lost her parents only to be exposed to her heartless grandmother… Sherry shook her head. What a nightmare.

Danielle stopped the car in front of Madison’s apartment building, turned off the engine, and shifted to face Sherry. Tears glistened in her eyes. “For the first two years after her parents’ death, Madison wasn’t exposed to this horrible person because she was mostly at a boarding school. But when she got caught kissing another girl, Aunt Eileen arranged for Madison to be homeschooled to avoid a scandal that could taint the family name. So from then on, the only contact with normal people”—Danielle made quotation marks in the air—“was when I and my parents came for a visit or later when Madison and I hung out together. I really regret not trying harder when she cut off contact with me.”

Sherry unbuckled her seat belt and raised her eyebrows. “Why would she do that?”

Danielle averted her gaze. “It’s silly. Madison got drunk one night, told me that she loved me, and tried to kiss me.”

“B-but she’s your cousin!”

“Second cousin, but that’s not the point. She was just starved for love and confusing one kind of love with another. For me, it really wasn’t that big of a deal, but she was so embarrassed. She stormed away and ignored my calls and messages for weeks until I…gave up. Up until recently, we hadn’t talked in five years.” Danielle’s shoulders fell. She peeked over at Sherry, and a tentative smile tugged at the corners of her mouth. “I’m really glad to be back in her life…and that she has you now. She needs someone who loves her.”

Guilt squeezed Sherry’s chest, making it hard to speak. Not that she knew what to say. “It’s, um, still pretty new and there’s a lot I don’t know about her, but she’s the one, you know?” Wow, that had probably been the worst declaration of love in the history of mankind.

Danielle covered Sherry’s hand with her own. “Don’t worry. She’ll open up to you.” Smiling, she added, “Madison can actually be a real chatterbox, when she trusts you and feels comfortable.”

The memory of their first night together in Madison’s bedroom flooded her, and she remembered how much Madison had told her about her childhood. Did Madison trust her?

“Just don’t give up on her the way I did.” Danielle’s voice broke on the last word.

Oh God. What was she supposed to say to that? She couldn’t swear to never leave Madison. As soon as their little arrangement ended, she’d be out of Madison’s life for good. The air seemed to be sucked out of the car. Sherry didn’t care how it looked; she had to get out of here. She shoved open the passenger door. “I just remembered that Jake is waiting for me. Thanks for bringing me and for…” For what, exactly? She had learned more about Madison than she’d bargained for.

Danielle smiled again, and this time the sadness was gone. “Thank you for listening to all of that. That can’t have been easy. You love her after all.”

Sherry forced a smile and jumped out of the car.

“See you tomorrow,” Danielle said.

Feeling numb, Sherry nodded, closed the passenger door, and stumbled inside.

Madison opened her apartment door, closed it quietly, and even hung her jacket—against her usual behavior—on the coat rack.

Seeing the jacket hanging there made her pause. What the hell was up with her? Since when did she give a shit if her behavior disturbed others? It was ridiculous that she was still ruminating over Sherry’s words from a few days back. Before I knew you, I had no idea why anyone would have to pay someone to have a family. Now I get it.

She wanted to tear the jacket down again, but even she had to admit that it would have been childish.

A muffled voice caught her attention. Curious, she strolled toward Jake’s half-open door.

Jake was talking to someone, but there was no answer. “Don’t think anything of it. Mom says she’s our friend.” Jake was silent as if listening for an answer.

“Mm-hmm, I also don’t get why she’s nice one moment and then mad all of a sudden. And how she looks when she’s angry…”

Was Jake talking about her?

“Don’t tell anybody, but sometimes I’m very scared of her.”

Her hands balled into fists. When her fingers hurt, she forced her hands to relax. No, he couldn’t be talking about her. Who was he talking to anyway? Hesitantly, she looked into the room. Ah, his teddy.

“You know what?” Jake asked. “I’ll just draw Madison a picture. Maybe she’ll like me better then.”

Madison’s eyes burned. Maybe she’d gotten some dust in them or something like that. Blinking, she spun and headed toward her bedroom. She wanted to be alone.

Next chance she got, she would talk to Sherry so that she could convince Jake not to draw something for her. She didn’t want to be like Grandmother Eileen, who had ripped her drawings apart when she had been a kid. In the end, the papers would just lie around and remind Madison how uncomfortable Jake felt in her presence.

When she walked past the kitchen, she saw Sherry and Rita Mae standing there chatting.

As if feeling Madison’s gaze on her, Sherry turned. Her expression was strange before she hurried toward Madison, stopped in front of her, and opened her mouth. But instead of speaking, she just looked at her.

“Anything wrong?”

Slowly, Sherry shook her head.

“Well then…I’m going to my room.”

Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Sherry nodding.

Sherry was behaving really weirdly today. Had something happened? Don’t think about it. It’s none of your business.

“Dinner will be served in about thirty minutes,” Rita Mae called after her.

Without answering, Madison marched to her bedroom.

Sherry followed Madison’s every movement when she sat down at the dinner table.

“Enjoy your meal,” Rita Mae said, and Sherry and Jake mumbled a “Thanks, you too.”

“Yeah, enjoy your meal.” Madison put some vegetables and mashed potatoes and a piece of steak onto her plate, totally focused on her task, as if nothing else existed.

When Rita Mae frowned at Sherry, she shrugged. What was up with Madison this evening?

Jake piled as much food onto his plate as would fit.

When Sherry saw this, she stopped his attempt to haul even more mashed potatoes onto his plate. “You have enough, don’t you think?”

“Aw, but Mom, I’m hungry.”

Rita Mae tsked at him. “Anyone would think we were letting you starve here.”

Jake crossed his arms in front of his chest. But when he looked down at his food, he probably realized that he couldn’t eat with folded arms, so he loosened his stance and started shoveling mashed potatoes into his mouth.

“M’m, hw’s the n’ school?”

“Swallow before you speak, please.” To be honest, Sherry was quietly excited about his new school. No metal detectors or drug dealers lurking around. She smiled at Madison, who looked as if she had a bad smell under her nose. The corners of her mouth fell. What the heck was going on with Madison? Was she thinking about her own school days?

Her earlier conversation with Danielle had changed how she saw Madison’s behavior. It wasn’t that she felt pity for her. No, it was more like—

“Why not?” Jake whined.

“What was that, baby?”

Rita Mae covered Sherry’s hand with hers. “Everything okay?”

“Yeah, I was just thinking.” Sherry leaned toward Jake. “What was your question again?”

Jake just pouted.

Madison cleared her throat. “He asked if he could come with us to work one day to see the Archer.”

Sherry blinked. Madison had listened to him and even bothered to repeat his words? She had obviously missed more than Jake’s question.

Her mouth fell open when Madison told him in a patient voice, “We have to work there, so we can’t look after you at the same time.”

Jake stared at her. He probably was as surprised as Sherry was. “How about if I’m really good? Or…” He smiled. “I could help you.”

“I’m sorry, baby, but that’s not possible. Madison’s right. But if you want, we can drive to the Archer when we’re not working. We can also introduce you to Danielle then.”

The gap in Jake’s teeth showed when he grinned at them.

Madison leaned back and resumed eating the few things she’d put on her plate.

“Anyone interested in desert?” Rita Mae asked after a while.

“Yeah!” Jake jumped up, almost knocking over his half-filled glass of water.

Sherry caught it at the last moment. “Hold your horses.” She winked at him and stood. “You stay here. I’ll get desert.”

Madison was staring at her half-empty plate and didn’t seem interested in desert.

Had something happened at her meeting with her lawyer? Just one way to find out. “Madison, wanna help me?”

A line formed between Madison’s eyebrows before she stood and followed Sherry without protesting.

As soon as they had reached the fridge, which couldn’t be seen by the dinner table because it was at the back of the open-space kitchen, Sherry touched Madison’s arm. “Are you okay?”

Madison looked at her as if she was surprised by the question but also Sherry’s gentle voice. “Sure. Why’re you asking?”

Sherry withdrew her hand. “If there’s ever something you want to talk about, no matter what, you can, you know?”

She expected a sarcastic or maybe even aggressive retort. Instead, Madison said, “Could you tell Jake not to draw me a picture?” After a second, she added, “Please.”

“Um, okay.” Clueless as to what had prompted this request, Sherry took the ice cream container out of the freezer.

Chapter 16

With the city in front of her, Madison took a sip of her Rum and Coke. The evening rush-hour traffic on the other side of the floor-to-ceiling window sluggishly fought its way through the tight streets. It all seemed so far away.

The honking of some cars barely filtered through to her, and the excitement of the falling night with all its promises was blocked out by the thick glass in front of her.

Observing all this hustle and bustle as if she were just an impassive bystander gave her a few minutes of peace before the guys showed up. Or so she tried to tell herself.

Phil’s text message yesterday, letting her know when they would show up tonight without asking how she’d been, had hurt. He didn’t seem to care that they hadn’t spoken all week.

Madison took a healthy swig from her glass, and the alcohol burned in her throat. It felt good, and she relaxed. Obviously, she had been tense. Nothing better than a drink to calm your nerves.

“Madison?”

She turned and almost lost the grip on her glass. At the last moment, she caught it with her second hand.

Sherry walked toward her in a tight black cocktail dress that accentuated her breasts, and the high heels she wore made her look taller. Her blonde hair had been put up in a bun and revealed her long, kissable neck. Sherry was still too thin for her liking, but she’d never been this breathtaking.

Only a few inches away from Madison, Sherry stopped, fidgeting with the hem of her dress as if wanting to make it longer.

Madison drained her glass.

Sherry blushed. The soft red on her cheeks made her more attractive than any makeup ever could. Besides some eye shadow, which brought out her intense green eyes, Sherry didn’t seem to be wearing any makeup at all. “Is this okay?”

“Um…” Madison’s mouth was dry, and she was sorry to have emptied her glass already. She had to get another drink, and soon.

“You’re stunning,” Rita Mae said from the buffet she was arranging on the dinner table. “You’ll blow Madison’s friends away.”

“Thanks, Rita Mae.”

Madison just nodded, too tongue-tied to say anything. What the hell was up with her? It’s not as if she’s the first hot women you’ve seen.

Sherry had turned heads at her grandmother’s too. Her outfit had been more conservative, yes, but she had still looked nice.

Madison strolled to the kitchen to get herself a glass of Kamikaze. In a hopefully conversational voice, she said, “You look good.” She filled the glass to the rim and placed the prepared decanter containing the cocktail mix back into the fridge. “The guys will buy that we’re a couple without a doubt.”

Sherry had started fidgeting once more, but she stopped now. “Why?”

Rita Mae got the last plate from the kitchen counter. “Your outfit is quite…revealing, I’d say.”

Sherry blushed even more.

She shouldn’t feel like she appears easy to get. Madison stepped up to her and took Sherry’s chin between her thumb and forefinger and lifted it until their gazes met. “It’s because you’re exactly my type. Not because your dress is short, but because you look breathtaking.”

Sherry stared at her own heels. “Thank you,” she said quietly. “Your clothes are nice too.”

That’s not what Madison had said, but she decided not to comment on that. Instead, she glanced down at herself. Her favorite black slacks and her wine-red blouse were nothing fancy, but they were very popular with the ladies. And the outfit was comfortable. “Thanks.”

“Mom?”

Sherry stepped back, interrupting their contact. “Yeah, baby?”

Already in his jammies, Jake lumbered toward them. His eyes widened. “Wow, you look like a movie star.”

“Thanks, honey. Why are you still awake?”

Jake jumped up and down. “I’m so excited because of the party. Can I come too? I promise to behave.”

Sherry sighed. “I’ve told you, this is a party for adults.” Her ass stretched nicely under the tight dress when she bent to look him in the eyes. “If you go to bed now and sleep right away, I’ll tell you all about the party tomorrow. Deal?” She made him giggle by nudging the tip of his nose.

But then he sobered again.

Rita Mae rushed toward them and took his hand. “What do you say if I get ready too and you can sleep in my bed for once?”

Jake smiled, but the grin dimmed quickly. Had he just remembered her snoring?

Madison bit her lip to stop herself from laughing.

The doorbell rang, and Rita Mae pulled Jake into her room.

Madison drained her glass and slammed it on the counter. Showtime!

As soon as Rita Mae had dragged the pouting Jake into her room, Madison rushed to the door and turned to Sherry. “Just play along.”

Sherry’s heart was racing. During their evening with Mrs. Fielding, she had worn a short outfit too, but the one tonight was even shorter and her cleavage was much more prominent. No matter what Madison said, Sherry felt like a high-paid prostitute.

“Sherry, honey!” she shouted loud enough to be heard through the door and probably half of the floor.

Sherry scurried over to her.

Madison grabbed her hand and tore open the door. “Hi. Get in.”

“Yo! Have you got vodka?” a blond guy in his early twenties bellowed.

“Is the Pope a Catholic?” Madison answered. “Come in. Sherry, that’s Phil. My best friend.”

On closer inspection, his bright blond hair was fake, showing his dark roots. He wore low-slung bootcut jeans, and his shirt was unbuttoned—too much for Sherry’s liking—revealing his hairy chest.

First, he gave Madison a very shallow hug, then did the same with Sherry. “Fancy meeting you, hot stuff.”

Sherry’s hackles rose. That was Madison’s best friend?

“Jesus, Mad,” Phil said. “If I didn’t play for the other team, I’d snatch her for myself. She looks good enough to eat. Where did you find her?”

Madison stepped to the side to let the other five guys and two women enter.

“You’ll have a hard time believing it, but she was wearing a waitress uniform the first time we met.”

Phil shoved her. “Ooooh, Mad, you dog. I didn’t know you were into kinky stuff!”

“What?” Madison’s eyes widened. “No. No, she’s a waitress.”

“Oh.” He regarded Sherry thoughtfully. “Well, in that case… What’s your name again, sweet pea?”

She didn’t like him. At all. And that had nothing to do with his flamboyance. “Sherry.”

“What was that, baby doll?” Smiling at Madison, he said, “You’ve got a shy one here, huh?”

Madison wrapped one arm around her waist, and it took all of Sherry’s self-control not to flinch.

“You should see what a tiger she is in bed,” Madison purred.

Sherry gaped at her. Hopefully, Jake hadn’t heard that. Even if they were a real couple, Madison’s words would have been totally inappropriate.

Phil waved her off. “No, thanks.” He took Sherry’s chin between thumb and forefinger. “Although with her, I could be tempted.” He sashayed toward the kitchen. “Has somebody mixed me something by now?”

“Mad made Kamikaze,” one of the guys shouted.

“Thank the Goddess,” Phil called back. “Is the Vodka cold enough?”

“In the freezer.” Madison closed the door and followed him into the kitchen. Dragging Sherry with her, she whispered in her ear, “The guys are Mike, Jason, Ryan, Tim, and Liam. But you don’t need to remember that. I’m not even sure their parents know their names.”

Madison giggled, and her breath tickled Sherry’s ear. She would have liked to move away from her, but that wasn’t an option.

“I don’t know who the girls are, so don’t ask.”

Madison seemed so different. Sherry’s instincts told her to keep her distance, but Madison clung to Sherry as if she were the last life belt on the Titanic.

When Sherry felt Madison nibbling on her neck, her breathing hitched. Goose bumps ran down her back. She was trapped. What was she supposed to do? And why did it feel not entirely unpleasant?

“If I didn’t make out with you at least a little bit,” Madison whispered, “the guys would see right through it.”

“A warning would have been nice,” Sherry hissed. Where had the Madison she’d been getting to know over the past few days gone? That Madison wouldn’t have done this.

Madison nipped on Sherry’s earlobe. “Okay, so here’s your warning. I’m gonna kiss you now,” she breathed. “Just relax and enjoy.”

Enjoy? Before Sherry could protest, Madison’s lips were on hers. Rooted to the spot, she forced her eyes closed. Her heart was rapidly hammering within her chest. Calm down! It’s like the kiss in front of Mrs. Fielding’s house. It’ll be over any moment. But then Madison’s lips opened and her tongue demanded entry. At the same time, Madison pushed her against the wall.

Oh God. Her stomach seemed to do flip-flops and her pulse thumped in her throat.

The wall pressed into her back, keeping her trapped within Madison’s embrace. With both hands, she held on to Madison’s shoulders, fighting the urge to push her away. Her legs trembled, and she needed to hold on to Madison to avoid sliding to the ground. It was so confusing. She didn’t want to be kissed by Madison. Yet the passion and tenderness wrapped in this one kiss made her head buzz. Never in her life had she been kissed like that. Madison’s woody perfume surrounded her like a warm blanket. She tasted of the strong alcohol she’d drunk and a hint of mint.

Ignoring the taste of alcohol, Sherry focused on relaxing into the kiss. She dug through Madison’s hair and pulled her head closer.

Someone moaned loudly, and for a second, she thought it had been her, but then the moaning came again, and she realized it had been Madison.

Her heart was beating so wildly it felt as if it were trying to burst out of her chest. Was her body in a state of alarm? Or perhaps fear? No. It wasn’t disgusting or even unpleasant to kiss Madison, nor was she afraid.

This kiss was so different from the one in front of Mrs. Fielding’s house. It was—

“Hey,” Phil shouted from somewhere behind them. “You’ve got guests. Could you keep your fingers to yourself for a sec and tell me where the vodka is? It’s not in the freezer.”

As though in slow motion, Madison stopped the kiss. Looking deeply into Sherry’s eyes, her chest was rising and falling rapidly. Her blue eyes darkened, and she blinked a few times as if confused.

Sherry felt breathless too. Wow! What a kiss. Where had this thought come from? Okay, she didn’t have much kissing experience. While Andy and Madison had both kissed her against her will, there was a huge difference between those two experiences. Not even Jimmy, Jake’s father, had kissed her so…softly or with so much passion. His kisses had been wet and awkward and sometimes possessive as if he had been trying to establish his dominance.

Madison’s kiss couldn’t have been more different from these previous encounters.

When Madison took a step back, she held on to Sherry as if needing the support. Without looking away from Sherry, Madison said in a husky voice, “I told you it’s in the freezer, and that’s where it is.”

“No,” Phil said. “I checked it out.”

“Then do it again,” Madison growled.

Madison took another step back, spun around, and marched into the kitchen.

Sherry was grateful for the wall behind her, holding her upright. This didn’t make any sense. She hadn’t wanted to kiss Madison. But for a second, she had almost been able to believe she had enjoyed the kiss.

Nonsense! She wasn’t here because she wanted to be, and she definitely wasn’t a lesbian. So why had she liked Madison’s kiss more than the ones of her only boyfriend so many years back? It had to be Oslo syndrome. No. Stockholm syndrome. Yes, that’s what it was. She had no choice but to kiss Madison, so her subconscious was telling her it wasn’t that bad, that it had even been nice.

Phil rummaged through the freezer and pulled out a bottle of vodka. “Oops. Got it. The little bugger was hiding behind some vegetables. Since when do you have vegetables in the house?”

Madison shrugged. “I’ve got a housekeeper now. She takes care of these things.”

“The Kamikaze is almost gone,” one of the men declared while serving himself a glass.

“Then slow down a bit,” Madison said. “I’ve only had two drinks, meaning I’m probably two or three behind on you guys.” She nudged Phil. “Don’t tell me you didn’t go to Billy’s before you came here.”

“Guilty as charged,” one of the men said, grinning.

“So what?” Phil asked. “Let’s go to the living room to get this party started. And Liam, bring the Coke so we can mix.”

With trembling hands, Madison went back to Sherry, placed her hand on her waist, and pulled her toward the living room. She had kissed Sherry to give the guys a show, but she hadn’t been prepared for the effect it would have on her. Really dumb. After the kiss in front of her grandmother’s house, she should have been warned. She still felt dizzy. And she was very aware of her hand touching Sherry’s slim form. Touching Sherry, smelling and tasting her… It was intoxicating.

“Do you think we could tune down the music a little? It’s too loud for Jake to sleep.”

Sherry’s words were like a cold shower.

Madison let go of her and went to the stereo system one of the guys had just turned on. Against protest, she lowered the volume. She raised both hands in a gesture of defeat. “Sorry, guys, but Sherry’s son is sleeping next door.”

“Shit, Mad, even in the facility my granny lives in, there’s more action,” Ryan complained while handing the woman beside him the half-empty bottle of vodka.

“Good to know where you hang out when you’re not with us.” Madison headed back to Sherry, who seemed lost standing alone beside the buffet table.

“You hungry?” Madison asked quietly.

Sherry shook her head.

On closer inspection, Sherry looked pretty pale. “Hey, Mike,” she called toward the couch. “Would you make some room for Sherry?”

Mike was gazing up from his conversation with Jason. “C’mon,” he mumbled and pulled Jason with him. After going to the cabinet where Madison kept different sorts of alcoholic beverages and taking a bottle of something, they both sat down beside the floor-to-ceiling window and kept talking as if nothing had happened.

When Sherry seemed hesitant to go over and sit down, Madison took her cold hand, walked her to the couch, and sat. “See? That’s better. Wanna eat or drink something?”

“A glass of water maybe.”

After the episode at her grandmother’s, and what she had learned about Sherry, she didn’t try to talk her into drinking something alcoholic. Instead she just nodded and walked off.

As she was pouring some water into a glass, one of the girls rubbed against her from behind like a cat in heat. “Hi,” she purred.

Madison’s body reacted immediately, sending heat between her legs. Without thinking, she half-turned to wrap one arm around the girl’s waist.

Then it hit her. What the hell was she doing? Sherry could probably see them, but even more importantly, everybody else could. Someone in love wouldn’t behave like that.

But glimpsing into the living room, she realized that nobody seemed to be paying them any attention. And Phil was talking Sherry’s ear off.

The woman in her arms started nibbling on her neck, and all of Madison’s bodily fluids went south.

No!

She pushed the slut away and said in a surprisingly determined voice, “I’m with Sherry. Find someone else.”

At the same moment, Sherry looked over her shoulder, clearly searching for her. Her eyes screamed “Help!”

Phil was probably trying to interrogate her.

With the water glass in hand, Madison squeezed past the slut and reached the couch within seconds. “Here, honey.” She gave Sherry the glass and sat down between them.

“Thanks.” Sherry didn’t seem to mean only the water.

“Your sweet pea here just told me that it wasn’t exactly love at first sight for her.”

“She did?” Had Sherry lost her mind?

Sherry covered Madison’s hand with her own and caressed it with her thumb. “I hope it’s okay with you that I told him the truth?”

For a moment, all Madison heard was a loud buzz. “What?”

“Are you okay, Mad?” Phil asked.

He was her best friend, but he couldn’t keep a secret to save his life. It’s over.

“Sure.” But nothing was okay. What the hell had she told him? Maybe they still could—

“Madison, I told Phil the truth, that I thought you were arrogant and self-centered in the beginning, but that I realized fast that you’re a total romantic and kind.”

Romantic? Kind? That was the pretend truth? Sherry was ruining her reputation!

“You know,” Phil said, “I have to admit that I had been wondering how you and someone like Sherry got together. But Sherry obviously knows a different Mad.”

What the hell had they been talking about? She hadn’t been gone for more than two or three minutes.

Sherry gave her a chaste kiss on the cheek. “You might just be right.”

“Spin the bottle!” Jason shouted. His suggestion was followed by cheering.

“Not so loud, dammit!” Madison couldn’t believe that she was even thinking these words—she normally didn’t have a domestic bone in her body—but how was Jake supposed to sleep with this shouting?

“Pull that tree trunk out of your ass.” Phil walked over to the circle forming on the floor beside the buffet table.

“Thank you,” Sherry whispered.

“I doubt it’ll help.” Madison nodded toward Phil. “What exactly did you tell him?”

Sherry sighed. “He came over to me and told me there was something he didn’t get.”

“What was it?”

“Phil said that aside from my looks, I wouldn’t be your type and that we don’t fit together.”

“He really said that?” If Madison and Sherry really were a couple and Sherry was insecure about their relationship, this would have been bad. Really bad.

“That was why I told him it wasn’t love at first sight. I hope that was o—”

“Hey, you two gonna join us or what?” Liam shouted over from his place in the circle.

“We’re coming.” Madison stood. “I never pass on that,” she told Sherry in a quieter voice.

Sherry gazed almost longingly toward the hall. “I’ll look after Jake.”

Madison took her hand to hold her back. “Do you think that is going to help him sleep? I don’t think so.”

“As if he could sleep with this ruckus going on.” She pointed at two women who excited the hallway and skipped toward Jason, shouting at the top of their voices, “Drink! Drink! Drink!”

Groaning, Madison pulled Sherry with her to the circle. “Could you tune that down, please? I told you already Jake is sleeping next door.”

“Who’s Jake?” the blonde slut who had tried to seduce her earlier slurred. “Maybe he wants to join the party?”

“He’s my son,” Sherry said in an angry tone.

Both women laughed as if Sherry had made a joke.

Phil shoved one of the women so that she fell to the side. In a serious voice, he said, “Sorry, Mad. We had to empty the bottle so we could start. We’ll behave now.”

“Yes, Mad,” the blonde slut said and added in a bad imitation of Phil, “We’ll behave now.”

Sherry’s lips pressed together in obvious disapproval.

Madison and Sherry sat down, completing the circle.

Jason held the now-empty vodka bottle. “Ready?”

Everybody but Madison and Sherry cheered.

“Dammit!” Madison spat. “This is the last time I’m telling you this. Be quiet!”

To her surprise, Sherry squeezed her arm and sent her a grateful smile.

Madison straightened under the silent praise until she became aware of what she was doing. Hell, she didn’t need to get Sherry’s approval.

She snatched the bottle from Jason. “I’ll go first.”

Nobody dared to cheer this time.

It was strange to see how Madison kissed first one of the men and later one of the women on the lips. In both cases, it was just a fleeting kiss, but it still seemed silly. Not even as a teenager had Sherry played such a stupid game.

The bottle neck landed on Sherry, and the man who had spun the bottle crawled on his hands and knees toward her like a lion stalking its prey.

Sherry’s heart was racing.

“Behave,” Madison warned him.

The man halted his movement. “Oh, c’mon, Mad. Don’t be like that. Even Elton John would get a hard-on if he kissed her.”

Sherry had problems keeping her expression neutral. She certainly hadn’t grown up in the nicer parts of the city, and these last years she hadn’t lived in something remotely close to a middle-class home. But never in all those years had anybody talked about her in that way. Not even Andy and that said something.

Hopefully, Jake will never meet any of them. Jake… Was he asleep?

Probably not. The music, the chatter, and laughter were likely loud enough to disturb the neighbors.

“Elton John and everybody else—and yes, I also mean you, Ryan—had better keep their hard-ons in their pants when my girlfriend is close by.” Madison grinned as if she were starring in a toothpaste commercial. “She’s all mine.”

Both Phil and Ryan’s jaws dropped.

“You’re serious, aren’t you?” Ryan asked.

Madison pulled Sherry closer. “As serious as a heart attack.”

“But I’ve won this kiss,” Ryan protested like a petulant child.

Sherry used his distraction and gave him the merest hint of a kiss on his lips before leaning back.

“Hey, that’s not fair.” Ryan pouted. “I wasn’t ready.”

Everybody laughed, and Phil said, “Hey, you told me the same when we—”

Ryan jumped up as if he had been bitten by a hornet and put his hand over Phil’s mouth. “Hush!”

“Ryan’s bi,” Madison whispered in Sherry’s ear, causing an unexpectedly nice shiver to run down her back.

After Ryan sat back down, Madison pointed toward the bottle. “It’s your turn.”

She couldn’t feel excited about that but grasped the bottle, closed her eyes, and spun.

Loud cheering prompted Sherry to open her eyes.

The bottle neck had landed between herself and Madison.

This time, she wouldn’t get away with a small peck. Sherry straightened as if preparing for battle.

Madison didn’t smirk or wink but looked tense. She inhaled, then leaned closer and took Sherry’s face into her hands. It started as an incredibly gentle kiss, but as expected, Madison soon deepened the kiss while slowly entering Sherry’s mouth with her warm tongue.

Instead of focusing on the increasing heat spreading all over her body, Sherry tried to think of something else. This was a job. That’s all. She was an actress playing her part. Madison’s breasts pressed against hers, and within seconds, a ball of fire formed in Sherry’s gut and engulfed her whole body.

Madison’s tongue explored her mouth at a leisurely pace, and Sherry was shocked to realize that she had entangled Madison with both arms. God, this felt really so—

“Dear lord!” Rita Mae’s screeching voice penetrated her fog. “What’s going on here?”

Madison moved away from her so quickly that Sherry couldn’t compensate and landed on top of her. As fast as her dazed mind allowed, she scrambled up, avoiding Madison’s gaze.

“We’re playing spin the bottle,” Phil said. “And you are?”

“She’s my housekeeper.” Madison’s voice was shaking. “What’s wrong, Rita Mae?”

Her arms crossed in front of her chest, Rita Mae stared down at them even though she was standing at the other end of the room. “Jake can’t sleep.”

Sherry jumped up and stumbled on wobbly legs toward Rita Mae. “I’m coming.”

Chapter 17

Phil waved his hand in front of Madison’s face. “Ground control to Mad.”

“Huh?” With some effort, Madison looked away from Sherry’s retreating back. If Rita Mae had barged in here, there had to be something wrong with Jake. Maybe she should also check on him. Don’t be ridiculous. Sherry would take care of it.

“Nice ass,” Ryan said while staring at Sherry’s behind.

Madison frowned at him. Her gaze had also followed Sherry as she left the room, but she hadn’t even remotely thought about her assets. Strange.

“Mad, are you even listening to me?” Phil asked.

“Uh, yeah, sure.”

“Really? What have I just said?”

“That we should keep playing, what else?” She took the bottle.

“Nice try. I asked if you’ve got anymore vodka.”

“Don’t know. I’m gonna ask Rita Mae.” She stood and walked toward Jake’s room.

Rita Mae was standing with her arms crossed in front of the closed door and was looking pretty pissed.

“How’s Jake?”

“He had finally fallen asleep when someone shouting woke him up. Since then he’s been wide awake.”

“We tried to be quiet.”

“Not very much or he wouldn’t be crying right now in his mother’s arms, scared to death.”

“H-he’s crying?” Bile rose in her throat.

Another round of laughter came from the living room.

Madison’s hands balled into fists.

Rita Mae stepped up to her until their noses were almost touching. “And what exactly do you think you were doing with Sherry?”

Madison instinctively took a step back. Rita Mae was still wearing her brown skirt and her lily-covered blouse. Had she expected trouble and hadn’t changed clothes because of that?

Rita Mae stepped up to her again. Did she want to appear threatening, or ensure that nobody could eavesdrop? “Just because she’s playing your girlfriend doesn’t mean you can harass her like that.”

“W-what?”

“It’s okay, Rita Mae,” Sherry said.

When had she left Jake’s room?

“She isn’t doing anything we didn’t agree upon earlier.”

That wasn’t exactly true, but who was she to object? And why was she allowing Rita Mae—her subordinate—to talk to her like that? Ah, doesn’t matter now. She faced Sherry. “How is he?”

Sherry pressed her lips together. “He isn’t used to being kept awake by drunken people who do God knows what.”

“What do you mean with ‘who do God knows what’?”

Rita Mae made a noise that reminded Madison of a growling Rottweiler. “A few minutes ago, two of your…guests confused the hall with a no-tell motel. At least that’s how it sounded. When I had calmed Jake down, I went out to chase them away, but they were already gone.” Her features hardened even more. “Jake thought someone was seriously hurt out here.”

“Mom! Mom!” Jake’s scared voice filtering through the closed door was like a punch to her stomach.

Madison’s hands hurt when her short fingernails dug deeper into her palms. Enough! “Sherry, Rita Mae, go to Jake.” When they didn’t move, she barked, “Now!”

Startled, they scurried into Jake’s room.

“Woohoo!” came out of the living room.

Madison marched in that direction. “Enough!” she shouted. “The party’s over!”

Everything went quiet, and they stared at her as if she had two heads.

“Are you kidding?” Phil asked.

“What do you think? Get your stuff and leave.”

Phil stood and touched Madison’s arm, but when he searched her face, he snatched his hand away as if it had been burned. “What’s up, Mad?”

“You haven’t just managed to wake up Jake; a couple of you also scared him to death when you decided to reenact a cheap porn movie in the hall.” She moved her jaw to get rid of something that felt like a cramp.

“We were just having a little fu—” The slut exchanged glances with the woman beside her.

“I don’t care what you were doing,” Madison growled. “Get lost. Now!”

Displeased mumbling in between some laughter accompanied the group getting up and stumbling to the hall.

Phil and Madison walked side by side in silence.

“You know, Mad, you’re not a family person.”

“You know, Phil, I don’t give a shit what you think.” She tore the apartment door open and waited until everyone but him had left her place. “And something else: my name is Madison.” Without waiting for an answer, she slammed the door.

Breathing heavily, she leaned against the closed door. If she had taken a moment to think about what had just happened, she probably would have admitted herself to the loony bin. Phil was right: she wasn’t a family person. She’d never called quits at a party and certainly not for someone else. “What the hell’s up with me?” she asked into the now quiet apartment.

The first thing Madison became aware of was a weight on her shoulder. Next she felt tiny hands grabbing her pajama top.

Tiny?

She opened her eyes and saw Jake’s head. It seemed as if she had wrapped one arm around him and pulled him closer in her sleep.

That wasn’t how she had imagined it when she had given in to Sherry asking if he could spend the night with them.

Her first impulse was to shove him away, but then she caught a glimpse of his relaxed features. His quite breathing made her eyelids heavy again. She fought the urge to close her eyes. Have you totally lost your mind?

Over Jake’s head, she gazed at Sherry, who was lying half on her belly, half on her side facing her—or more likely Jake—one arm reaching out for him.

A smile stole onto Madison’s lips. It was kinda cute how those two had taken over her bed.

Cute? Okay, she probably should’ve eaten something over the course of the evening, because the alcohol was obviously still having some effect on her. That or she really was about to lose her mind. Why else would she have kicked out her friends and then allowed the boy to use her as a pillow?

Carefully, she shoved Jake to the side until he was lying beside her.

Problem solved.

Their upper bodies were still touching, but as soon as she moved a little bit more to the edge of the bed, they would cease to be in contact.

But before she could move, Jake made a noise of protest and slung one arm around Madison again.

Madison rolled her eyes. When she tried to push him away a second time, she caught a glimpse of his tense face. Was he having a nightmare?

Ah, who cares? Madison closed her eyes.

Dammit! She did.

She knew all too well how it felt to be woken up by party noises and to be afraid of them.

Grandmother Eileen had called her parties “festivities” and other fancy names, but they had still consisted of people getting drunk and bad-mouthing others while stuffing their bellies full of so-called gourmet food.

Madison would never forget the one night shortly after she had lost her father. A man had mistaken her room for the bathroom. He’d apologized and left immediately, but the encounter had still left her frightened and lost. Almost as much as the imagined monsters lurking in her huge closet at night.

Declaring defeat, she pulled Jake closer. She fell asleep almost immediately.

Slowly, Sherry opened her eyes. She stretched and yawned for all she was worth. But when she turned to Jake, she froze.

He was lying in Madison’s arms, and both were sleeping peacefully as if it were an everyday occurrence.

Sherry rubbed her eyes. Was she imagining things?

His head was lying on her shoulder, and Madison seemed to have pulled him closer in her sleep, her arm wrapped around him.

Too many emotions at once surged through her and made her feel dizzy. Why had Jake cuddled up to Madison and not her? They looked so peaceful together.

A few loose strands of hair covered Madison’s relaxed features. Sherry reached out but stopped herself just in time before she could brush them to the side.

I think I’m losing it. She withdrew her hand and leaned back.

It was very likely Madison hadn’t even been aware of Jake’s cuddle attack. She would probably be angry when she woke up and found him like that.

Sherry gently pulled the blanket down from Jake’s body. Then, as carefully as possible, she pulled on Jake’s hand, which was currently lying on Madison’s shoulder. When she realized that this alone wouldn’t resolve the problem, she crawled closer and leaned over Madison to pull on Jake’s whole body.

She had gotten him halfway apart from Madison when he mumbled a protest in his sleep.

Madison’s eyes popped open, and their gazes met.

Oh no! Sherry forced a smile. “Hi, good morning,” she whispered. “It seems Jake moved over to you in the night. I’m really sorry. I’ll just—”

Madison smacked her lips. “Morning. It’s fine.”

“E-excuse me?”

“The sun’s barely up. Let’s sleep some more.” Not waiting for an answer, Madison took the blanket and covered Jake and herself again before closing her eyes.

Speechless, Sherry lay back down on her side but kept squinting at them. Not good. Not good at all. It was obvious that Jake was developing feelings for Madison. Although Madison seemed to tolerate Jake, or even like him, there wouldn’t be a happy ending. This was a temporary arrangement. But Jake didn’t know that, and even if he did, he was a child without any means to protect his heart as adults could.

I would certainly never develop deep feelings for Madison.

Her thoughts wandered to something Rita Mae had said last night, when she had tried to talk to Sherry after the party. She had spoken about Jake being totally defenseless against all of this. What she’d said about the party also rang true for Jake’s relationship with Madison.

Madison’s breathing had become deep and steady. Had Madison been fully awake when she’d talked with her moments ago?

So much about Madison didn’t make sense. After Madison had told her about her childhood and what Danielle had revealed, Sherry had been sure she understood her. But just when she thought she’d figured her out, Madison had kicked out her friends because of Jake and then let him sleep in their…in her bed.

And now this.

Once more, she looked over to the happy, sleeping pair. What a surreal scene.

Her memory of last night was still jumbled. The incredible kisses, the almost shy expression on Madison’s face afterward, and her repeated attempts to tone the party down.

And then Madison had kicked out her friends because of Jake.

Was Madison developing feelings for Jake?

“Mom?” Jake asked in a sleep-drunken voice.

“Yeah, baby?”

Jake let go of Madison and crawled over to give her one of his wonderful hugs. “Good morning.”

“Good morning, sunshine.” A little bit of Madison’s perfume clung to his frame. So strange. Looking over Jake’s shoulder, she met Madison’s gaze.

It was just a hint, but Sherry could have sworn that Madison was smiling before her eyes fell closed again.

Chapter 18

“Behave, you hear?” Kneeling in front of him, Sherry straightened an invisible wrinkle on Jake’s shirt.

Madison shifted her weight. How often did Sherry plan to repeat that? He’ll be late for his first class if she keeps this up.

Jake rolled his eyes.

“Don’t do that,” Sherry said.

“But Madison does that all the time.”

Sherry glared at Madison.

Madison hid a grin.

“It’s not nice.” Sherry turned back to Jake. “It’s a bad habit and you shouldn’t do it.”

“But why does Madison do it, then?” He pointed an accusing finger at Madison.

Sherry pulled his hand down. “Don’t point at people.”

“Why not?”

It took all of Madison’s willpower not to laugh. “Just do as your mother says,” she said in a hopefully stern voice.

Jake inspected his polished shoes. “Yes, ma’am.”

Sherry sent her a sour look.

Madison stared back while biting the inside of her cheek so as not to crack up.

“And be nice and friendly to everyone,” Sherry said, refocusing on Jake.

“I will, Mom.”

“It’s time.” Sherry hugged him for the probably twentieth time. “Have fun and please don’t run. You still have to take it slow.”

“Yeah, Mom.” He let go of Sherry and smiled at Madison.

What now?

He extended his arms.

Oh. Well, why not? She bent down and opened her arms.

Without hesitation, Jake fell into them.

In an automatic gesture, Madison squeezed him. A whirlwind of emotions, too complex to name, flooded her senses. It reminded her of how he had cuddled up to her a two nights ago.

She let go of him. “See you later, grasshopper,” she said in a rough voice.

Jake’s eyes were shining at the nickname. “You’ll both pick me up, right?”

Madison nodded because her voice failed.

Enthusiastically, Jake took two stairs at a time toward the school’s entrance.

“Not so wild,” Sherry called.

On top of the stairs, he turned and waved.

Sherry waved back, and to her surprise, Madison realized that her hand had risen on its own.

When Jake had disappeared within the building, Sherry said, “You and Jake seem to be getting along well.”

Madison shrugged even though Sherry was still focused on the entrance and couldn’t see her response.

Sherry turned to look at her with a serious expression. “Please don’t hurt my baby.”

An unexpected pain hit Madison in the chest. “Why do you think I’d hurt Jake?”

Sherry sighed. “I’m thankful that you take care of us and that you try to be nice to Jake.” She took a deep breath, then a second, as if the following words were hard for her to say. “But when this is over, we’ll go our separate ways, and the more Jake bonds with you, the harder it’ll be for him when we leave.” Sherry spun around and strode to the car with Madison staring after her.

She’s right. For a moment, it had felt as if they were a real family, but now reality had showed its ugly face. They were pretending to be a family, nothing more. You’ve got into your role a little too much. Don’t forget who and what you are. Because if there was one thing she knew, it was that she wasn’t a family person.

Resting her chin on her hand, Madison watched Sherry balance empty glasses and plates on a tray with just one hand while walking toward the kitchen. Sherry had an elegance to her movements that belied the simple task. Her hips were swaying as she gave a friendly smile to the customers on her left and right. Her cheeks were slightly flushed, which only added to her natural beauty.

When a customer raised his hand, Sherry changed her direction to exchange a few words with him before finally making her way back to the kitchen.

“Stop drooling over your girlfriend and get me three latte macchiatos,” Danielle said, leaning between two bar stools.

Madison straightened. “I’m not drooling.” How could she learn to be a good waitress if she didn’t observe? “Besides, I have no idea how to handle this stupid coffee machine, so—”

Sherry came back from the kitchen and touched Madison’s arm with her warm fingers while looking at Danielle. “Sorry, I haven’t had the time yet.”

“Time for what?” Madison asked.

“Sherry promised earlier to finally give you a quick tour of the coffee machine today.”

“Quick tour?” Madison crossed her arms in front of her chest. “I don’t need a quick tour.”

Danielle opened her mouth, but it was Sherry who spoke first. “Madison, you’re doing a fantastic job here, and it’s easy to see that you’re not a co-owner just on paper.”

“But?”

Sherry’s hand on her arm started a slow caress, distracting Madison. “But I’m sure you would like to be able to do everything here.”

“What you meant to say is that you would like me to be able to do everything here.”

The soft caresses were making it hard to focus, so Madison took a step back to interrupt the contact. Why didn’t Sherry just cut out her sugarcoating and say what was really on her mind? She and Danielle thought she was doing nothing but standing around uselessly. Madison could almost hear Grandmother Eileen’s stern voice saying, “You’re a good-for-nothing.”

Sherry’s fingertips touched her arm again. “Danielle, could you give us a second?” As soon as Danielle had disappeared into the kitchen, Sherry said softly, “I’m sorry. Why don’t we—?”

Madison tore away from her. “Did you have to talk about me being a good-for-nothing with Danielle behind my back?”

Sherry stared at her. “I did no such thing. And neither has Danielle. Besides, why would you think you’re a good-for-nothing?”

“Save your breath. I know what’s going on here.”

“Excuse me.” A young woman leaned over the bar. “I’ve been waiting for more than ten minutes for my latte macchiato now.”

Madison yanked the dishtowel from her shoulder and threw it on the counter. “Then five more minutes won’t kill you, will it?”

The woman’s mouth fell open, and even Sherry gaped at her.

“I…I’m getting to it right away,” Sherry said. “And of course, it’s on the house. I’m really sorry. It’s—”

“I don’t have to put up with being spoken to like that!” The customer turned on her heel, marched toward her table to grab her purse, and left the Archer while mumbling some pretty creative expletives.

“Was that really necessary?” Sherry asked.

Madison rubbed her neck. Maybe she could have been a little bit friendlier. On the other hand, it was the customer’s fault. It had been obvious that Sherry and Madison were having a private conversation.

Hopefully, Danielle hadn’t seen her exchange with the woman. Just yesterday, a customer had stormed out of the Archer after Madison had threatened to castrate him following his attempt to touch her ass. “Don’t tell Danielle, okay?” She wasn’t in the mood for another dressing down.

“You know,” Sherry said, “I’m not really in the mood for your childish behavior today.”

Madison blinked.

“I get it. You hate not being able to do something. Do you think Danielle or Jack knew everything about running this place at birth? If you want to learn it, I’ll teach you. But if you want to keep sulking and yelling at our customers, it might be better if you go home.”

“Y-You want to kick me out? Of my own coffee bar?”

Danielle came out of the kitchen, two full plates in hand. “Who wants to kick out whom? Madison, have you scared another customer off?”

Sherry didn’t blink as she held Madison’s gaze.

Madison was finally losing it, because a grin formed on her lips.

Sherry tilted her head, as if not quite sure what to make of Madison’s reaction.

“No,” Madison told Danielle. “Everything’s peachy here. Sherry was about to explain the coffee machine to me.”

“Great! But could you wait until Jack comes back? He can take over the bar then.”

“Sure,” she and Sherry said in unison.

When Sherry and Danielle went to serve the tables and Madison brought a regular his beer at the bar and some peanuts, she pondered about what had just happened.

Sherry stood up to you; that’s what happened. She couldn’t say what surprised her more: that Sherry had done it or that she hadn’t minded. After all, Sherry was working for her, not the other way around. Sherry had made that more than clear this morning when they’d been in front of the school.

On her way back from a table, Sherry winked and smiled at her as if nothing had happened.

Madison smiled back before rolling her eyes at herself.

“No, Wait!” Sherry stopped her by grabbing her wrist.

“What now?”

Other people might have thought Madison to be moody, but by now Sherry realized that Madison was just insecure. “When you’re done foaming up the milk, you have to turn on the steam again to clean the tube before cleaning it outside with a wet washcloth.”

“But I can do it later.”

“No. The milk foam is very sticky. In order to keep everything hygienic, you have to do it now.”

Grumbling, Madison turned on the steam, then took the washcloth and wiped the metal tube clean. “Happy now?”

Sherry smiled. “Happy. Okay, so back to the glass. You fill—”

“How’s it going?” Danielle asked from the other side of the bar.

“Great,” Sherry said. “Madison is a model student.”

Madison snorted.

“It’s true.” Well, almost. But Madison needed all the motivation she could get.

“Sounds good.” Danielle leaned on the bar. “Please get me a hot chocolate for table four.”

Madison slammed the pot with milk foam on the counter. “Now?”

Danielle smirked. “Next week if it were for me, but the customer on table four might not want to wait that long.”

Sherry put a hand on Madison’s back. Strange how often I do that. She had lost any inhibitions when it came to touching Madison. On the other hand, caressing Madison’s back seemed to calm Madison down, so it was the logical thing to do.

“Sherry?” Danielle asked. “You okay?”

“Sure.” Sherry withdrew her hand from Madison’s back. “Madison, why don’t you take care of this hot chocolate while I prepare the latte macchiato for table twelve? This way we get things done faster and can continue with our lesson as soon as the next latte macchiato is ordered.”

Hesitantly, Madison nodded and got to work.

On her way back from delivering the latte macchiato, Sherry met Danielle halfway.

“You know,” Danielle said, “I really admire how you handle Madison’s mood swings. As a teenager, I never could stand it for long when she was in one of her moods.”

Couldn’t Danielle see through the façade? “She tries. That’s all that counts.”

“If you say so.”

When Sherry stepped behind the bar, Madison was cleaning the metal tube of the coffee machine’s milk foamer.

“Did someone else order a latte macchiato?”

“Um, no. But I was thirsty, so I thought I would get a head start.” Madison beamed at her.

She really was willing to learn. Sherry smiled back at her. Without taking a moment to think about it, she went onto her toes and gave her a kiss on the cheek.

Madison touched her freshly kissed cheek. “What was that for?”

“Because you’re my favorite student.”

Madison’s smile widened even more.

Chapter 19

School buses blocked the street and parents waited in their cars for the school bell to ring. When it finally happened, kids left the building in a hurry.

Sherry looked through the windshield of Madison’s BMW convertible with its dropped hardtop, searching for Jake, but even after five minutes, he was nowhere to be found. “God, what’s taking him so long?”

“He’s probably just talking with some classmates,” Madison said, but she also seemed to be keeping an eye out for him. “Don’t be so nervous about it.”

Sherry unbuckled her seat belt. “I’m not nervous. Shall we go look for him?”

“If you want.”

They left the car and walked toward the entrance.

Madison kept pace with her. “Are you worried he might not like it here?”

“No, I’m sure he loves it here. There are no drugs being dealt or bullies trying to beat him up.”

Madison’s steps faltered. “Drugs? Don’t tell me—”

“Mom!” Jake ran toward Sherry with his arms spread, ready to be swept off his feet.

“Baby, I told you not to run.” Sherry rushed to pick him up.

“And? How was your first day?” Madison asked.

“It was great!” After a few seconds, he started squirming. “Mom, let me down. I want to tell Tony bye.”

Sherry let him down. “Tony?”

Jake pointed to a boy about his age. “Tony Burlinski. My best friend.”

Sherry and Madison grinned at each other.

That was fast. Sherry smiled. “Hello, Tony.”

“Hello, Mrs. Miller.”

“It’s Ms. Miller,” Sherry corrected.

Tony frowned. “Don’t you have a husband?”

Jake took Madison’s hand. “She has Rita Mae and Madison.”

“But—”

A woman appeared behind them. “Tony, what’s taking you so long?”

Tony wrapped an arm around Jake. “This is my new best friend, Jake.”

“What happened with Bradley?”

“He’s dumb. He just cares about Sally and her stupid horse.” Tony smiled up at Sherry. “This is Jake’s mom, and this is…” He looked with a lost expression at Madison.

Sherry extended her hand. “I’m Sherry Miller. Nice to meet you.”

The woman took Sherry’s hand. “Dolores Burlinski. Nice to meet you too.”

It hit her like a baseball bat. Their charade had to be played here as well. Just say it. Sherry half-turned to Madison. “And this is my…my partner, Madison Fielding.”

“Partner? In what kind of busin—” Mrs. Burlinski had taken Madison’s hand but now let go as if she’d been burned. “Oh. I see.” She pulled Tony away from Jake. “Please excuse us. We’re running late.”

Tony shrugged and allowed his mother to drag him away.

“Want to tell us about your first day?” Madison asked.

Sherry was still looking after Mrs. Burlinski and her son. This woman’s obvious distaste for their pretend relationship made her stomach drop. Hopefully, Jake wouldn’t experience any repercussions because his mother was thought to be a lesbian.

“Sherry, you coming?”

“Huh?” When she turned, Madison and Jake had already walked to the car. “On my way.”

“And then Sally told Paul that he’s an idiot and…”

Madison tuned out the rest of the tale. Jake had barely taken a breath between all his stories. How much more could he have to say about his first day at school?

“Did you learn something too or were you just talking with the other kids?” Sherry asked.

“We had history and English, oh, and math. Math was cool.”

Over her shoulder, Madison asked, “Did you have problems keeping up?”

Jake gave Madison a look as if she had insulted him.

“He was the best student in his old class,” Sherry whispered in her ear, causing a pleasant tingle. “He got beaten up for that more than once.”

The tingling became a burning when anger surged through her. She gripped the wheel tighter.

“I think I did okay,” Jake said as if afraid to admit he had done great. After a short hesitation, he added quietly, “Tony and Sally tried to copy from me and I let them, but then Ms. Hunter saw it and was angry with them.” He smiled. “But she wasn’t angry with me. She praised me for not having made any mistakes.”

“That’s wonderful, baby.”

“And what did your other classmates think of you being so good?” Madison asked.

“Tony and some of the others said I was cool. But Sally said I was cheating.” He grinned. “But Ms. Hunter didn’t believe her.”

Madison’s grip on the wheel loosened while she drove into the underground garage.

“But don’t think that you have to learn less because you’re doing so well.”

“No, Mom.”

“Don’t be so hard on him.” Madison turned into her parking spot and shut off the engine. “He’s just six and—”

“Jake, would you please go ahead?” Sherry interrupted her in a strange tone. “I have to talk with Madison about something. Rita Mae is probably waiting for you already.”

Jake looked back and forth between them and nodded. “Okay.”

With jerky movements, she undid her seat belt, got out, and tilted her seat forward so that Jake could leave the car. When Jake attempted to take his bag, she said, “I’ll take that. Go ahead.”

As soon as Jake had disappeared into the elevator, Sherry tilted the seat back and sat back down. “I’d appreciate it if you’d keep your opinion about Jake’s upbringing to yourself.”

“What the hell is your problem? All I said was—”

“You criticized me in front of him.”

“I did not.”

“You did. You said I shouldn’t be so hard on him and—”

“I know what I said!” Maybe she was getting a little bit loud, but it wasn’t up to Sherry to tell her what to say and what not to.

“I’m his mother. Not you. Rita Mae helps him every day to study so that he can be whatever he wants to be one day. I won’t allow you to get involved in this!” This time, Sherry was the one getting loud. She got out of the car, tilted her seat again, and snatched up Jake’s schoolbag. Then she slammed the door forcefully and stomped toward the elevator.

Madison ran after her. “Jake has only started school, for God’s sake. Besides, you don’t have to jump into my face just because I say what’s on my mind.”

Ignoring her, Sherry kept marching to the elevator.

Madison caught up with her and grabbed her elbow. “You’re totally overreacting.”

Sherry broke free of her touch and pressed the button.

Had she missed something? Why was Sherry’s reaction so over the top? And why had Sherry suddenly lost all respect for her? First at the Archer and now this?

Okay, at the Archer she had kind of liked it, but now Sherry had gone too far. Madison was still paying her after all.

“Did you see how she looked at us?”

“Who?”

“Mrs. Burlinski.”

“The homophobic owl?” Madison rolled her eyes. “Who cares what she thinks?”

“She’s gonna tell all the parents. What if they don’t let their kids play with Jake anymore? That would break his heart.”

“That won’t happen,” Madison said, but now Sherry’s words had made her worry too. Shoving the feeling aside, she added, “Maybe we’ll get some stares at parent-teacher conferences or stuff like that, but I really don’t think Jake will have any problems.”

Sherry shifted her weight. “How can you be so sure?”

“Because Jake is the cutest little boy there is. And everybody will want to be his friend.” Madison’s mouth snapped shut. Where had that come from? And had she just implied she would accompany Sherry to parent-teacher conferences?

The elevator doors opened, but they ignored it.

“And if not? He didn’t really have the chance to play with other kids in the past. Either they picked on him or there weren’t any to play with.”

“Why was he picked on? Because he was such a good student?”

Sherry shuffled her feet as if she was embarrassed by the answer. “There was that. You know, it’s important to me that he’s articulate, that it’s not obvious where he comes from as soon as he opens his mouth. You know that I don’t have money. And God knows he deserves better than what he’s had up till now. All I want is that he’ll have a chance in life. I want him to have all the opportunities I didn’t have.” She swallowed. “I want to teach him the importance of education. This means as much to me as him having a happy childhood. Our arrangement has the potential to give him both.” She shook her head as tears began to form in her eyes. “I don’t want him to be an outcast. Can’t you understand that?”

Madison was speechless. She hadn’t thought about what all this meant for Jake. And then there was Sherry. Yes, she was a mother. But until now, Madison hadn’t seen how hard Sherry tried to be a good one. A woman living in a trailer park, barely getting by but wanting to create a better future for her son and to give him a happy childhood. One she didn’t have herself.

Madison forced a smile, even though a wave of sadness threatened to drown her. “He’ll be fine.” She would do anything in her power to make that happen.

Sherry searched her face for a long time before lowering her gaze. “I’m sorry if I overreacted.”

“It’s okay. I…I will try to stay out of his upbringing. It’s none of my business.”

“You can tell me when you think I’m making a mistake with him. Rita Mae does that too. But tell me when he’s not there to hear it.”

“Got it.” We’re almost behaving like a real couple. This thought made Madison pause. Shaking her head, she pressed the button for the elevator again.

Sherry touched her forearm. “Thank you.”

Madison answered her with a forced smile.

“Hey, Mad, what’s up?” Phil asked as soon as Madison had accepted the call.

Reminding him that she wanted to be called Madison probably wasn’t the best idea after she’d kicked him out last weekend. Relieved that he was still talking to her, she dropped onto the couch.

“Same old.” She looked around. Sherry was sitting with Jake at the table doing math homework while Rita Mae was preparing dinner in the kitchen. “How about you?”

“I’m great actually. Listen, you won’t believe it.” Phil clicked his tongue. “We got banned from the Contaminated. They told us not to come back. Ever!”

“How the he—” She peeked over to Jake, who was busy doing his homework. “Um, I mean, how did that happen?”

“It’s kind of all your fault.” Phil chuckled. “We went there after your party got…ah, canceled. Anyway, Liam was a total fuck up. He powdered his nose together with a guy he had picked up as if there wasn’t going to be another day. First they were just dancing like maniacs on our table. But then all of a sudden they started fucking like rabbits. On the table for all to see.” Phil barked a laugh. “Can you imagine? Everybody and their dogs got out their phones. It’s even on YouTube. I tell you, that was the first live porn of my life. If you wanna see it, search for ‘Contaminated’ and ‘gay porn.’ About half an hour ago it was still up.”

Madison’s jaw dropped. Had there ever been a time when she would have found this funny?

“Mad? You still there?”

“Yeah. And no, thanks. I’ll just take your word for it.”

“You okay? Still pissed because of the party or what?”

“I’m sorry, okay? But you really could have tried harder to be quiet.”

Silence.

Finally, Phil said in an unusually serious voice, “Really, Mad, are you okay?”

“Sure, why?”

“You’re so different. Is it because of your sugar pie, or is something else going on with you? Got a bad diagnosis at the doctor or something?”

“No bad diagnosis.” But Phil was right. She wasn’t herself anymore. All this pretending for the damn inheritance was totally messing her up. The lines between the person she was and the one she was pretending to be became blurrier every day.

“Mad?”

“I…I’m not sure how to answer.”

“All this family stuff is messing with you.” He took a deep breath. “It almost happened to me too a while back, you know?”

“What are you talking about?”

“Yeah, well, last year there was this guy. Divorced. He had a son. We dated for about two months. I really liked him, but…I’m just not the settling-down type and neither are you.”

“Last year? Why didn’t you say something to me or the guys?” Or at least to her. They were best friends, dammit.

“It wasn’t serious, so nothing to tell.” After a slight hesitation, he asked, “But it’s different with you, isn’t it?”

And how different. She hated lying to him, but he was the biggest chatterbox in the States.

Out of nowhere, Jake appeared behind the couch. “Madison?”

Madison turned. “Yeah?” Into the phone she said, “Give me a minute.”

“Mom told me not to draw you a picture.” He fidgeted. “But I thought if I ask you, you, um, would let me. I mean, the drawing is for you, not for Mom, so…” He looked up at her with a hopeful expression.

Sherry came from the hall, probably from a visit to the bathroom. “Baby, what are you and Madison talking about?”

Jake spun around. “Nothing.”

“Shall we talk another time?” Phil asked.

Madison suppressed a sigh. “Yeah. That might be better. I’ll call you later.” Their conversation wasn’t over yet, and she had to think about what to tell him when they spoke next time, but for now she had to talk to Jake.

They said their goodbyes, and Madison put down her cell on the coffee table.

“Don’t lie to me, Jake.” Sherry came closer. “You wanted to ask Madison if you could draw something for her, didn’t you?”

Jake nibbled his lower lip.

The gesture reminded Madison of Sherry. “Jake, I asked your mom to tell you not to draw something for me.”

An expression of hurt crossed Jake’s young face. “Oh.”

His sadness hit her in the chest. “But maybe a drawing wouldn’t be such a bad idea after all. I mean, um, we could hang it up somewhere.”

Like a switch had been turned on, Jake grinned at her.

And she had caused that. Oh my, she really was changing.

Chapter 20

Madison walked past Jake’s door just as Sherry sat down on the edge of his bed to read him a bedtime story. As if under a spell, Madison stopped to listen.

Sherry had just opened the book of fairytales when Jake asked, “Mom, why did Mrs. Burlinski act so weird today after you told her Madison is your partner?”

He’s picked up on that? Of course he had. Jake had been standing beside them. How could she have been so naïve to believe he wouldn’t have heard this exchange just because he was a kid? As a child, she’d also heard everything Grandmother Eileen said about her as if Madison hadn’t been standing right beside her.

Madison leaned closer to see and hear Sherry’s reply.

Sherry was pale. Instead of answering, she put the book of fairytales on the nightstand and gazed to the door, as if knowing that Madison was there and begging her for help.

Dammit! Guess you have to say something now. Hesitantly, she entered the room, closed the door, and sat down in front of Jake’s bed.

But before she could think of something to say, Sherry took a deep breath and said, “Tony’s mother doesn’t like that Madison and I get along so well.”

Jake tilted his head. “Why not?”

Sherry rubbed her forehead with one hand as if that would help her think of a good answer.

It wouldn’t do to tell Jake some kind of fairytale or lie. Even though Madison had told Sherry it would be fine, it was possible that he would be mobbed for being the supposed child of two lesbians.

Yes, it was a fake relationship, but telling anybody wasn’t an option. That left telling Jake about their relationship. Not that it was Madison’s job to do that. However, now that she was here anyway… “Jake, do you know what a lesb—”

“Madison!”

“What? Don’t you think he should—”

“Yes, but I’ll do it.”

For once, she wanted to help, and that’s what she got. Madison stood. “Have fun explaining it to him, then.”

Sherry grabbed her leg. “No. Wait.” Again she rubbed her forehead. Did she have a headache? “Stay, please.”

Would she finally be able to decide how to do this? Jake was observing their interaction, so Madison sat back down. He had to believe them so that he could tell everybody convincingly that they were a couple. At some point he would meet her grandmother, and if he didn’t convince her that she and Sherry were together, their whole plan was in danger.

Sherry smoothed a strand of hair out of Jake’s face. “Do you remember when I told you that Madison is our friend?”

Jake nodded.

“And you know that I sleep in Madison’s bedroom.”

“Because Rita Mae snores so badly.”

Madison chuckled, but a stern expression from Sherry cut her off. Jesus, she’s really pissed today.

“Because of that and because I… Because I like sleeping in Madison’s bed.” Sherry swallowed. “We’re a couple.”

Jake frowned. “A couple?”

“Yeah,” Sherry croaked. “Like, a man and a woman are a couple sometimes.”

“But Mom,” Jake said. “You’re both girls!”

“And that’s why Mrs. Burlinski reacted so strangely,” Madison said, and this time Sherry didn’t complain about her speaking up.

Jake sat up. “Does that mean Madison is like Bob?”

“Who’s Bob?” Madison asked.

“The stepfather of one of the girls in the trailer park,” Sherry supplied, and to Jake she said, “It’s complicated.”

Madison rubbed her neck. “Well, your mother and I are a couple, but—”

“Does that mean I can call you Mom too?”

Sherry stared at him as if he had just grown two heads.

She should have been happy about his question. Calling her Mom would have been perfect for their charade. But this was no game. Not for Jake. And it felt all wrong. Madison held a hand to her suddenly cramping stomach.

Sherry took a deep breath. It sounded shaky. “It’s not important what you call someone, baby. It’s much more important that this someone is always there for you. And I and Rita Mae are.”

“And Madison,” Jake added, grinning.

“A…and Madison,” Sherry croaked. She forced a smile and tapped his nose. “Do you remember when you wanted to call Rita Mae ‘Grandma’?”

“Yeah, but she said she was too young for that.”

“And do you love her any less because you call her Rita Mae instead of Grandma?”

He shook his head.

“And do you think she loves you any less because you don’t call her that?”

“No.”

“See? That doesn’t change anything.”

“Madison?” Jake looked at her with a vulnerable expression on his little face.

“Yeah, grasshopper?”

“Will you always stay with us?”

Madison felt sick to her stomach, and her eyes started burning. His guarded yet hopeful expression was too much for her. She had to leave. Now. She jumped up.

Jake followed her movements like a hawk.

“I…” She cleared her throat. “We will always be friends. No matter what,” she forced out and tried to smile.

After some endless seconds, he nodded as if deciding that was enough. “Okay.”

“Good night,” Madison mumbled. She stumbled out of the room as fast as her legs would allow. Standing in the hall, in front of the closed door, she felt as if all the air had been sucked out of her lungs. A few deep breaths and it would be better. It had to be.

Don’t think about it. How often did Grandmother Eileen promise something and later didn’t give a shit about it? But as much as she tried telling herself it had been a necessary lie, a quiet but insistent voice told her that she wasn’t anything like the witch. And maybe, just maybe, she could keep her promise to Jake somehow.

After she had talked to Jake and read him his favorite bedtime story, Sherry felt drained. Trying to pretend she was fine was exhausting.

As if the rest of the day hasn’t been tough enough. It was hard to believe that Jake’s first day at school had been today and not a week ago. Maybe Rita Mae felt the same, and that was why she had wished everybody a good night right after she’d cleaned the kitchen.

Not even a long, hot shower and putting on her favorite PJs managed to slow her racing thoughts. That strangely didn’t stop her from walking toward Madison, who was lounging on the couch in the dark living room, staring down at her lap. “May I?” Sherry pointed to the other end of the couch.

“Sure.”

She sat down and took in the lights of the city shining through the impressive floor-to-ceiling window. As tempting as it was, she couldn’t ignore their conversation with Jake. They had to talk about it. But words escaped her.

Maybe starting with something else entirely would help. Madison seemed to use this tactic often. “Were you talking with Phil when Jake interrupted you earlier?”

Instead of answering, Madison raised her head to also stare through the glass. She nodded.

“I’m sorry that he interrupted you. I thought I raised him better than to disturb other people’s phone calls.”

Madison waved her off. “It’s fine.”

“Did you call him back?”

“Yeah.”

When nothing more was forthcoming, Sherry suppressed a sigh. I should head to bed. Madison was clearly not in the mood to chat. But was it because of their conversation with Jake or her discussion with Phil? On her way to the shower, she’d heard Madison getting loud and then slamming something that sounded like her cell onto the coffee table.

Not sure what to do, Sherry shifted. Maybe she should just go to bed, even though sleep probably wouldn’t come for a long while.

No. She had promised herself years ago never to take the easy way out, and she wouldn’t start doing it tonight. “Did you have a fight?”

Madison shrugged and took a huge swallow out of a glass that seemed to come out of nowhere.

Was that Madison’s way of telling her that she didn’t want to talk about it, or didn’t she know how to start the conversation either?

In Sherry’s opinion, Phil wasn’t exactly a great friend to Madison. They had probably fought somehow over the party, even though their conversation in the early evening had sounded civil. If they had been fighting, it was only because Madison had looked out for Jake that evening.

I owe her. She moved closer to Madison. “Try again.”

Madison tore her gaze away from the skyline. “Try? What?” She drained her glass.

The smell of alcohol burned Sherry’s nostrils. God, how she hated that smell. It wasn’t easy, but she ignored her instinct to move away. “To answer,” she forced out. “Try to answer.”

Madison put the glass on the coffee table and leaned back so that her face was thrown into shadow again. She seemed to prefer the anonymity of the darkness. “Phil told me that I’ve changed and that he wouldn’t know what to do with me anymore.”

“Does he want to end your friendship?”

“Nah, he’s been my best friend for years.”

“Is that mutual?”

Madison’s head jerked toward Sherry. “What do you mean?”

She had to treat this carefully, or Madison would jump up and leave or become aggressive. “When two people are in a relationship, they help each other, and they mean a lot to each other.” And that’s what Jake thinks about Madison and me now. Sherry forced this thought aside.

“Aha. And?”

“That’s how it’s supposed to be, but not how it is. At least not always.” Sherry also leaned back. “When we love someone, we hope that he…or she loves us back. We need this someone and hope that they need us too.” After a short hesitation she added, “That’s what I thought when I met Jake’s dad.”

“Phil never wanted to bang me.”

God, how she hated Madison’s choice of words sometimes. But she probably wasn’t even aware how much pain she caused by being so rude. “It doesn’t matter. The approach is the same. Would you be there for Phil no matter what? And do you think he would be there for you just as much?”

Sherry had expected a superficial, evasive, or sarcastic reply, but Madison kept silent.

“Madison?”

“He was in a relationship. Not one of his flings. A real relationship. And he didn’t tell me about it until today.” She shook her head. “But he told Liam. And he spends almost all his time with Liam. I think…” With every word, her voice became quieter. “I think he’s his best friend now.”

Sherry had planned not to touch Madison so much anymore, but she couldn’t help herself. She moved closer and laid her hand on Madison’s forearm.

“He and Liam love their snow candy. I haven’t touched that crap since Danielle caught me with it when I was sixteen and told me off big time.”

Madison’s words should have shocked her, but she’d met so many people over the years who tried to drown out their problems with all kinds of drugs.

The good news was that Madison didn’t take any illegal substances, as far as she knew, so Jake wouldn’t be exposed to them. Now, Madison’s alcohol consumption was an entirely different matter.

Madison turned to stare at her. “Why am I telling you all this?”

Sherry pulled her hand back. “Why not?”

“You’re working for me, for one.”

That was the perfect opening to talk about earlier. “I am.” Sherry straightened. “And because of that I have lied to my son. I’ve lied to him about one of the most essential things in life.”

“What are you talking about?”

“Love, Madison. I’ve lied to Jake about who I love.” Sherry tried whenever possible to tell him the truth. She didn’t want to be like her own mother, who lied to her whenever she’d opened her mouth. But I’m lying to him about this. Bile rose in her throat.

“You haven’t told him that you love me.”

“Come on, what else would he think after what I told him?” Sherry asked, sounding harsher than she intended.

“He thinks we’re friends, nothing else.” Madison sounded as if she were trying to convince herself. She grabbed her glass from the table and stood. “I’m going to get myself some more. Want, um, a water or something?”

“No, thank you.”

When Madison came back, she sat down at the very end of the couch as if trying to get some distance between them. She drained half of the glass in one huge gulp. “It could take years until my grandmother bites the d…until she dies.”

Even though Madison spoke softly, her words felt like a slap in the face.

Granted, she had already thought the same, but having Madison voice it made it more real. Jake would bond with Madison over the years. Much more than he already had. But it couldn’t be helped. Should she thank Madison or condemn her?

“This situation isn’t easy for any of us,” Madison said when Sherry kept silent. “But kids are resistant. Whatever happens, Jake will get over it.”

“I don’t want him having to get over anything.”

Madison drained the glass and put it down. “It’s a little late for questioning your decision to do this, don’t you think?”

“Decision? You forced me into this,” Sherry spat. “Have you forgotten already?”

A flash of guilt washed over Madison’s face. Then she jumped up, and Sherry flinched.

But Madison didn’t come any closer. Instead she moved to the window. Almost able to touch the glass, she gazed outside.

Thinking she could talk with Madison about this in a normal manner had been stupid. She got up. “I’m going to bed.”

“I’m not good at this, okay?” Madison said without turning.

Sherry halted. Good at what? Emotions? She wanted to walk away but found herself standing beside Madison, looking up at her. “Don’t hurt my baby. That’s all I’m asking.”

Madison glanced down at Sherry. Her eyes were glistening, but Sherry couldn’t tell if it were from emotions or the alcohol she had consumed. “I don’t intend to.” After a few seconds of intense but not threatening eye contact, Madison added, “Believe me, I don’t want him to get hurt either.”

Her expression and her tone left no room for doubt; she really meant it.

Breaking eye contact, Sherry surprised herself by leaning her head on Madison’s shoulder. “Thank you.”

Later she couldn’t say how long they had stood there like that, just facing the lights of the city.

Chapter 21

“Why do I always have to wear tight, short dresses when we go somewhere?” Sherry asked quietly so that Jake, sitting in the back of the BMW, couldn’t hear. She stared at the convertible’s top, which Madison had thankfully put up today because the weather report had predicted rain later in the day.

Madison laughed.

“What did Mom say?”

“Nothing,” Sherry grumbled.

“Does it have anything to do with sex?”

Her head snapped to the backseat. When she realized Madison was looking back as well, she told her to focus on the traffic before asking, “Why would you ask something like that?”

“Tony said today that when adults are whispering, most of the time it’s about sex.”

When Madison giggled, Sherry glared at her.

“Mom, what’s sex?”

Madison fell silent.

So far, Sherry had always known how to answer Jake’s questions. More or less. But now she was at a loss for words.

“It’s a special kind of cuddling that only adults do,” Madison said.

Sherry blinked at Madison and nodded.

“Do the two of you do that too?”

Oh God. She met Madison’s helpless expression. There was no handbook for this kind of situation. Of course she wasn’t having sex with Madison. But part of her charade was to pretend they were. And if Jake were to speak to someone about this, he—

“Why are you asking, grasshopper?”

Sherry could have kissed her.

“I’m not sure Tony was right. He said that a man and a woman, um, so that when they have sex that he puts his willy into her—”

“We know how it’s done,” Madison interrupted.

“But you’re two women. If that is sex, then how can you do that if neither of you have a willy?” After a pause, he asked, “Or do you have one, Madison?”

Madison shook her head vigorously.

“Does that mean you don’t have sex?”

Madison gave Sherry a look. “Your turn.”

She hid her burning face with both hands and groaned. “When I was in elementary school, we didn’t speak about such things.” She let her hands fall to her lap. “I would have expected questions like that when you were attending your old school, not now. How did you come to be talking about this anyway?”

“Tony’s big sister told him about sex. Has she lied?”

“Baby, you and Tony are much too young for that.”

“For what?”

“To be talking about sex,” Madison supplied.

Jake frowned. “Is sex something bad?”

“No.” Madison turned into the street where the Archer was. “You just don’t talk about it in public. Especially not at school or at the dinner table.”

Her heart seemed to stop when she imagined Jake trying to talk about sex at the birthday party they were heading to. It definitely wouldn’t be the kind of surprise that Danielle’s mother would like for her birthday.

“Why not?”

“Some things you simply don’t do,” Madison said. “Like talking about your poop when eating.”

While Madison parked the car, nobody spoke. But when they had gotten out of the car and were walking toward the Archer, Jake asked, “So you both don’t have—”

“Jake,” Sherry groaned.

He lowered his gaze. “Sorry.”

Madison paused. “There are many ways to cuddle, right?”

Jake stopped and nodded.

“See. And your mom and I cuddle in a different way than what Tony has talked about.”

“But he hasn’t said anything about that. He said that’s the way it is.”

Sherry hunkered down to him and straightened his jacket. “Just because he knows a few things doesn’t mean he knows everything.”

Madison made sure nobody was paying them any attention before lowering herself to one knee in front of Jake too.

Jake bit his lower lip. Finally, he asked, “Is sex something icky? I mean, because you compared it with poop.”

Madison chuckled. “Maybe it wasn’t the best comparison. Sex… It’s just something for adults and something we don’t talk about in public.”

Jake looked at them both thoughtfully. “But why not?”

“Because it’s embarrassing for most people.” Sherry glanced longingly at the entrance.

“But why?”

She sighed. Her patience was running low, especially as the timing for this particular conversation was truly awful. “Jake, it’s good to ask questions. But sometimes you simply have to accept things how they are.”

“Like not talking about sex?”

“Exactly,” she and Madison said in unison.

It seemed to take forever, but eventually, Jake nodded.

She breathed out in relief. Hopefully, this embarrassing episode was now over.

Shortly after that, when Madison held open the door of the Archer, Sherry whispered, “Thank you. We’re a good team.”

Madison tipped an imaginary hat and bowed. “T’was a pleasure, ma’am. Always at your service.”

“Woah!” Jake’s eyes widened. “Is this all yours, Madison?”

“The Archer belongs to me and Danielle in equal parts,” Madison said. “Ah, there she is.” She took Sherry’s hand for everybody to see.

“Hey, guys!” Danielle skipped toward them with an almost empty cocktail glass in hand.

“Hi, Danielle,” Madison and Sherry said at the same time.

Danielle lowered herself to Jake’s height. “And you have to be sweet little Jake.”

Jake grinned. “I’m not sweet.”

“Oh, but you are. Your mother tells me every day what a sweet kid you are. Wanna tell me she’s lying?”

Jake giggled and shook his head.

Danielle held up her free hand. “I’m your…well, your aunt, I guess. Aunt Danielle.”

Jake frowned. “Aunt?”

Before Sherry could answer, Madison said, “Aunt sounds good to me.”

“She’s not really your aunt,” Sherry said. “But you can call her that if you like.”

Jake jumped up and down. “Cool! I always wanted to have an aunt.”

Danielle smiled at Madison and Sherry. “That’s what I call a greeting.” Focusing on Jake again, she asked, “Do you wanna see where your mom works?”

“Yeah!” He pointed to the bar where a few people were standing around, drinking and chatting. “Is that where Mom works?”

“Actually, I work there mostly,” Madison said. “But your mom does sometimes too.”

Danielle stood and leaned toward Madison to whisper, “Short warning; Aunt Eileen is here.”

“What?” Madison had obviously spoken louder than expected because some people turned to look at her.

Danielle shrugged as if she couldn’t help it and wasn’t all too worried about that fact. She took Jake’s hand. “I’m going to kidnap your cute Jake for now. See ya!”

“I’m not cute.” Jake grinned, and they both disappeared into the crowd.

Sherry moved closer to her. “What is it?”

“My grandmother is h—”

“Madison!”

Sherry flinched.

If Madison didn’t feel as bad as Sherry looked, she would have probably laughed about the shocked expression on Sherry’s beautiful face.

“Hello, Grandmother.” Madison stepped up to her and blew her an air-kiss.

“Good day, Mrs. Fielding.”

Grandmother Eileen sent Sherry the ghost of a nod, then focused on Madison again.

“What a, um, surprise to see you here,” she said in a hopefully neutral tone.

“I was invited at the last minute to this”—she made a face as if smelling something foul—“party. So this is where you’ve invested your money. Or should I say your parents’ money?”

“Yeah,” Madison forced out between clenched teeth. “It’s great working at the Archer, and Sherry—”

“What?” Grandmother Eileen screeched. “You are the owner and work here like a common waitress?”

“Mrs. Fielding,” Sherry said, “I am a waitress.”

“And a really good one at that,” Madison added.

Grandmother Eileen huffed. “What is there to be good at? Taking orders, bringing orders. Anybody can do that.”

Sherry took a deep breath and let it slowly escape. Was she having the same difficulties trying to stay calm as Madison was? “Madison does so much more than simply taking orders. She oversees the staff and takes care of the management. You can be proud of your granddaughter.”

It took all of Madison’s self-control not to topple over. Not just because Sherry was defending her passionately, but she was also lying for her without battening an eye. She’s going to get a raise.

But then she became aware of another feeling, this one much less pleasant. Shame? No. There was no reason to feel ashamed, was there? After all, what Sherry had said was at least partly true.

Without turning away from Madison, Grandmother Eileen said, “Sheryl, I’m sure that you think adding up some prices is already a management job, but—”

“Grandmother, that’s enough!”

Sherry and her grandmother stared at her.

“Sherry is my partner. Sherry, not Sheryl. And you know that. And whatever you think about her, the Archer, or me, I won’t allow you to talk to the women I love in such a manner.” Wow, where had that come from?

Grandmother Eileen opened and closed her mouth like a fish out of water.

“Mom,” Jake shouted while dragging Danielle after him. “Aunt Danielle has shown me how to do a hot chocolate with the big machine.”

“That’s great, honey.”

Grandmother Eileen looked down on him. “We’re having a conversation, young man.” Gazing into Sherry’s eyes, she said, “Obviously, your son needs to learn the most basic of manners.”

“Grandmother,” Madison growled. She wouldn’t allow her to keep insulting Sherry and Jake. This instinct to protect Sherry and Jake was new, but it felt absolutely right.

“What’s he doing here anyway? Don’t you have a nanny?”

“I need a drink,” Madison mumbled.

“Please don’t overdo it,” Sherry said quietly. “You have to drive home.”

What? Sherry wanted to tell her how much she could or couldn’t drink?

“What’s that supposed to mean?” Grandmother Eileen stared at Sherry as if she were an irritating insect, but she spoke to Madison. “Do you allow this woman to boss you around like this?”

“Mom doesn’t do that!” Jake shouted. He took Madison’s and Sherry’s hands.

Grandmother Eileen shook her head at him disapprovingly. “You don’t talk to adults like that, young man.”

Jake’s lower lip trembled, and he held on to Sherry and Madison as if scared by Grandmother Eileen.

I can’t blame him. As a child, she had been terrified of her too.

Startled, Madison realized that she wasn’t angry at Sherry anymore for telling her not to drink too much. Instead, all her anger was focused on Grandmother Eileen and her bullying, especially toward Jake.

Jake let go of Madison’s hand to put his thumb in his mouth, something that she had never seen him do before. Around the thumb in his mouth, he asked, “Why are you so nasty?”

Danielle’s hand flew to her mouth, barely covering a snort.

Grandmother Eileen looked down at Jake as if she’d just swallowed a fly.

Madison bit her lower lip trying not to laugh out loud at Jake’s wonderful question. He was truly precious.

“It seems quite obvious,” Grandmother Eileen finally said to Sherry, “that you haven’t taught the boy any manners at all, and God knows it hasn’t become easier with Madison close by. But I demand you call your son to order.”

Sherry’s expression hardened.

“Insult me as much as you want,” Madison growled. “Most of it is probably true. But Jake is a well-raised kid, and he’s right. You are a nasty woman.”

“You’re talking nonsense, Madison. Like always.” Pointing at Jake, Grandmother Eileen said, “A good nanny might be able to fix this. With Madison, the nanny did a decent job. The problems started only when she began having a mind of her own.”

“Which nanny do you mean, Grandmother?” Madison asked. “I lost track after a while.” She took a deep breath. “We have Sherry’s friend Rita Mae as our housekeeper. She also looks after Jake.”

“A friend?” Her forehead twitched but didn’t crinkle along with her frown, probably because of a recent Botox job. “And you have one person for both? Madison, is your money running that low already?”

Enough! She’d had enough of her and she would—

As if sensing that Madison was about to explode, Sherry nudged Jake to the side and touched her arm gently. “Honey, didn’t you want to introduce me to Danielle’s parents?”

Madison wanted to let this go. She really did. But something kept her rooted to the spot. The damn old witch thought she could say and do whatever she wanted. Not anymore. She would—

Sherry covered Madison’s lips with her own in a soft touch.

Madison’s eyes fell closed. Everything around her seemed to disappear. God, so soft. The smell of Sherry’s perfume—something with vanilla—flooded her senses. With both hands she pulled Sherry closer and deepened the kiss pushing aside all other thoughts except for how wonderful Sherry tasted and felt in her arms.

She wasn’t sure, but for a second it had sounded as if her grandmother had huffed and marched away on her nasty high heels.

Too quickly, Sherry ended the heavenly kiss and stepped back. Avoiding her gaze, she looked down at Jake.

He was tilting his head as if trying to decide what to make of this. Finally, a huge grin spread across his face.

Danielle winked at Madison. “They are sitting at table seventeen.”

“Um, what?” Madison’s brain seemed to have stopped working when Sherry had kissed her. Why had Sherry kissed her anyway?

She wanted to prevent you from doing something stupid, idiot. Well, Sherry had accomplished her mission, and in the most pleasant of ways. How did Sherry manage to rattle her so much with just a simple kiss? No, that hadn’t felt like a simple kiss at all.

“My parents,” Danielle said. “If you’d excuse me now? All this action has made my throat dry.”

To her surprise, Madison didn’t even want to have a drink anymore. Sherry was so much better than a drink. She cleared her throat. “Let’s go and wish the birthday girl the best.”

Chapter 22

Sherry barely heard Jake’s tale about learning how to make his own hot chocolate with Danielle. She was too focused on her hammering heartbeat for that. It was just a kiss. And it wasn’t our first one. Everything’s fine. It was okay for Jake to see. It was just…a kiss.

Kissing Madison had been the right thing to do. Who knew what she would have said or done otherwise? Mrs. Fielding had to believe that Madison was changing. If she’d lost control, their whole plan would have been in jeopardy.

“Hello, Bill.” Madison stopped in front of a man with salt-and-pepper hair and let go of Sherry’s hand, which was burning from the simple touch. “How’re you doing?”

“Madison! I’ve never been better.” Bill gave Madison a bear hug. “About time that we saw each other again.” He let go of her and smiled at Sherry. “And who do we have here?”

Sherry gave him her hand. “Sherry Miller, sir. I’m Madison’s partner.”

“Don’t call me ‘sir,’ or I’ll think my father is standing behind me.”

His huge hand was covered with calluses, showing Sherry that he wasn’t a stranger to hard physical work.

“And, as I understand, we’re almost family, so you can call me Bill.”

Sherry blinked. It had already been hard to believe that Danielle was part of the same family as Madison’s grandmother, but Bill? “I’d like that, Bill. Please call me Sherry.”

He nodded and let go of her hand. Smiling down at Jake, he asked, “And who are you?”

“I’m Jake.”

“That’s my son.”

“I should have guessed. You really look alike.” Bill tousled Jake’s hair and then turned back to Madison. “You wanna give my Lillian your best, eh?” He moved to the side, and a few feet behind him appeared an older version of Danielle.

Like her daughter, Lillian Fielding had wavy, red hair falling wildly over her shoulders. She wasn’t wearing any makeup, which made it possible to see her countless freckles even in the dim light of the Archer. If not for the few wrinkles around the eyes, she could have easily been mistaken for Danielle’s older sister.

“Lillian.” Madison opened her arms. “Happy birthday!”

With a muffled “whew,” Danielle’s mother was engulfed in a hug. “Thanks, grasshopper. And thanks for helping with the makeover.”

Grasshopper? So that was where Madison had obtained her nickname for Jake. But what kind of makeover was she talking about?

“My pleasure.” Madison took a step back but kept one arm around Lillian Fielding. “Danielle told me the car looks great.”

“Great? The car’s a dream. And without your financial contribution, it could have taken Bill many months or even years to fix it up. I never would have thought I’d ever drive a 57 Corvette, yet alone own one.” Over Madison’s shoulder, Danielle’s mother beamed at Sherry. “And you are the woman who managed to conquer Madison’s heart.” She nudged Madison. “What are you waiting for? Introduce us.”

“Sherry, Jake, this is Danielle’s mother, Lillian.”

Sherry wanted to give Mrs. Fielding her hand, but Danielle’s mother stepped forward and wrapped her arms around Sherry.

“I know Eileen, so I’m pretty sure she hasn’t welcomed you to the family. Let me be the first to do so.” Still holding on to Sherry, she leaned back to meet her gaze. “Or did Danielle already do this?”

“I, um…no, she didn’t. Thank you, Mrs. Fielding.”

“Heavens, it’s Lillian.” More quietly, she added, “Mrs. Fielding is the always grumpy woman over there.” She pointed to Madison’s grandmother standing at the bar, draining a glass of scotch if the color of her drink was any indication.

Sherry smiled at Lillian. It was hard to get a word in with Danielle’s mother, but Sherry liked her anyway.

Lillian crouched down in front of Jake. “Hello, you.”

Jake looked up to Sherry as if unsure how to respond. When Sherry nodded at him, he shoved his hand in her direction. “Hi, I’m Jake. Are you my fake aunt too, like Aunt Danielle?”

Lillian had just taken his hand. Now, her jaw dropped. “Fake aunt?”

Sherry stepped behind Jake and put her hands on his shoulders. “Baby—”

Lillian waved her off. “I have to admit nobody has ever called me that,” she said thoughtfully. “So, you’re calling Danielle aunt?” She let go of his hand.

Jake nodded and leaned closer. “Yeah, but she’s not really my aunt,” he said in a conspiratorial voice.

“Ah, now I get it.” She rubbed her chin. “Well, in that case you can call me aunt and Bill uncle, if you like.” Imitating his earlier conspiratorial voice, she added, “But maybe we can leave out the ‘fake’ part.”

“Cool! I’m getting an uncle too.” He glimpsed at Bill, who was standing close by, talking to an elderly woman. At Jake’s whoop, he looked over and smiled before going back to his conversation.

Lillian stood. “Great. So now that the introductions have been taken care of, we have to get Danielle to dance with somebody.”

Didn’t Lillian know Danielle was interested in a mechanic working for her dad? When Madison had told her, she made it sound as if everybody knew. Well, everybody but the mechanic in question. Where was Danielle’s crush anyway? Wasn’t she supposed to be here?

“Um, yeah, good idea,” Madison said. “I’ll get right to it. Maybe she wants to dance with me.”

Lillian put her hands on her hips. “Very funny, grasshopper. You know exactly what I meant. Besides, shouldn’t you dance with Sherry instead?”

Sherry pulled Jake closer. “It’s fine. I have to keep an eye on him.”

“I can do that,” Danielle slurred, stumbling toward them.

“No, thanks,” Sherry said. She liked Danielle, but no way would she allow an obviously tipsy, probably even drunk person to look after her son.

“Danielle, are you drunk?” Lillian asked in a more concerned than disapproving tone.

“Just had a little too much on an emp…empty stomach, Mom.”

“We could all sit down,” Sherry offered. “If you’d like, I could bring you something to eat or a coffee.”

Danielle waved her off and almost hit her in the process. “Oh, sorry. Nah, it’s fine. Dance with Madison.” She almost fell when she leaned forward to whisper something in Madison’s ear.

Madison nodded at whatever Danielle told her.

“Have fun, you two.” Lillian tousled Jake’s head. “I’ll keep an eye on the little angel.”

Sherry shook her head. “That’s nice of you, but I’d rather—”

“Thanks, Lillian,” Madison said. “We really appreciate it.”

Sherry stared at her. “We want to dance?”

“We do.”

Why was Madison suddenly so interested in dancing? There has to be a reason. Hesitantly, she let go of Jake. “All right. Jake, is that okay with you?”

“How about we get ourselves a milkshake?” Lillian asked.

“Yeah!” Jake threw one fist in the air.

“We’ll be there if you need us.” Sherry pointed to the corner where the billiard table usually was.

Madison took her hand and pulled her toward the dance floor.

Her warm fingers wrapping around Sherry’s were kind of distracting, but she tried to ignore it. “Just one milkshake,” she called over her shoulder to Lillian. “He’s already had a hot chocolate.”

Sherry turned back to Madison. “Why are we dancing?”

Madison pulled her closer and wrapped one arm around her waist.

Even through the material of her dress, Madison’s warm hand caused tingles.

“We have to check out Danielle’s mechanic. Danielle told me she just saw her flirting with a man.”

“So her mechanic is not into women?”

“Let’s find out.” Madison smiled, and something in Sherry’s stomach dropped.

She cleared her throat. “Why do we have to dance for that? I can’t dance.”

“Her crush is standing next to the dance floor, and I wanted to take my time to check her out.”

“Why don’t we go over and—?”

“It’s a slow song. Just keep looking as beautiful as you do right now, and I’ll do the rest.”

Sherry tried to ignore the warm feeling Madison’s casual compliment had caused.

Madison pulled Sherry even closer, and their bodies touched all along their lengths.

The gentle but firm touch caused Sherry’s legs to feel like overcooked spaghetti. Ignoring her physical reaction, she placed a hand on Madison’s shoulder.

Madison spread her hand over Sherry’s waist as if she wanted to touch as much of Sherry as possible, or as if she wanted to ensure she was leading her effectively over the dance floor, given Sherry’s inexperience. “Is it okay to hold you like this?”

Their gazes met.

Being so close to Madison made her head spin, but she nodded anyway. Her reaction had to be because Jake was most likely watching. What else?

Madison’s eyes bore into her as if she could see into her soul.

Sherry’s mouth went dry. Even if she had wanted to, she would have been unable to break the contact. It was as if Madison had hypnotized her.

Just separated by some thin pieces of fabric, Sherry could feel Madison’s heart beating as wildly as her own.

Slowly, they started swaying to the music. It was more a holding-and-cuddling movement than dancing.

Madison’s breasts were rising and falling in rapid succession. It didn’t feel threatening or uncomfortable. But it caused a heat deep within Sherry that chased all thoughts away.

Her eyes fell shut when she leaned her head on Madison’s shoulder.

They kept swaying in a slow rhythm, losing themselves in the soft music. It was incredibly peaceful. But there was also something else that she couldn’t put her finger on.

When Madison’s hold on her waist tightened, Sherry looked up at her.

Madison smiled shyly at her.

Those lips.

When Madison leaned down, Sherry held her breath.

But instead of kissing her, she whispered in Sherry’s ear, “I can see her now.”

“Huh?”

For a second, Sherry thought she could see in Madison’s eyes the same confusion she felt herself before Madison said hoarsely, “Danielle’s crush. She, um, she’s standing somewhere behind you.”

Her breath tickled Sherry’s ear and was like a cold shower at the same time.

“Oh.”

Madison chuckled, but it sounded forced. “I’m not surprised Danielle is switching to women for her.”

Sherry pushed Madison around until she could see the woman in question.

She had an athletic build and blonde hair done up in a ponytail. And she was talking to a dark-haired young man, gesticulating wildly.

“Wow,” Sherry whispered.

“Oh yeah.” Madison turned them back around. “Sorry to obscure your view. But we wouldn’t want you to fall for her too.”

“Very funny. Do you think she’s—”

“Shit! Kiss me.” Without waiting for an answer, Madison’s mouth covered hers.

Sherry’s eyes fell shut, and all thoughts fled her mind. If possible, her knees became even wobblier, and she held on to Madison with all her might. Her whole body was on fire, and if she didn’t know any better, she would almost have thought she was aroused.

When Madison came up for air, Sherry, equally out of breath, asked, “W-what was that?”

Madison bit her lip. “Danielle’s hopefully future sweetheart was checking us out.”

Was she kidding? “You almost kissed me senseless because she was looking at us?” Had Madison just been searching for a reason to kiss her, or had she lost her mind?

“I didn’t want her to think I’d been flirting with her or, um, something like that.”

Ignoring her shaky legs, she stepped back. “Because you were looking over?”

Madison inspected her shoes and shrugged.

This was ridiculous. As soon as they were back home, they would have a serious conversation about kissing. Not that it was really a hardship kissing her, but Madison couldn’t abuse their agreement whenever she felt like it.

Regarding the ridiculous situation with Danielle’s crush, she would put an end to this. Now. She grabbed Madison’s hand and dragged her off the dance floor and toward the mechanic and the guy.

Both were smiling at Madison and Sherry when they approached. “Hi,” they said.

“Hello.” Sherry let go of Madison’s hand. “I’m Sherry Miller. Danielle told me that you’re working for Bill. Is that right?”

To her surprise it was the man who answered. “We do. I’m Steve Tucker, and this charming beauty is Ruth Kent.”

Ruth snorted.

After they had shaken hands, Sherry pointed to her side. “This is my partner, Madison Fielding. She’s Danielle’s cousin.”

When Madison didn’t move, Sherry nudged her.

Belatedly, Madison shook hands with both. “Hi. Nice to meet you.”

“Steve and I were just saying what a cute couple you make.”

Madison stared at Ruth as if trying to read her thoughts.

Sherry bit her lip, trying not to laugh out loud. Madison was anything but subtle. “Thanks,” she said. “And you? Are you also a couple?”

Steve sighed. “I wish. But Ruth plays for your team.”

As much as Sherry could tell in the dim light, Ruth’s cheeks flushed.

Silence.

Out of nowhere, Madison said, “Well, then. It was nice talking to you. I’m sure we’ll get a chance to continue this later.”

Steve and Ruth blinked at her.

No wonder they were confused. Madison was downright rude.

“Nice meeting you,” Ruth said.

“Yeah,” Madison pulled Sherry away. “Same here.” After a few steps, she whispered into Sherry’s ear. “You are a genius.” A kiss on her cheek followed.

They really had to have a talk about all this kissing.

When they approached Danielle and Lillian’s table, Madison’s mood dimmed when she saw her grandmother talking to them.

“Does that mean you’ve fired Jonathan?” Madison heard Lillian say when they came closer.

Grandmother Eileen huffed. “He was an entirely incompetent butler. I’ve got no idea how I came to hire him in the first place.”

“You still haven’t told us what he did,” Lillian said.

“The question has to be what he didn’t do. He drank my scotch whenever I wasn’t looking and claimed it was the cook. Then I found out he had an affair with the maid and he stole toilet paper regularly.”

Giggling, Madison pulled Sherry toward the rounded seating bench where Jake was sitting with Lillian and Danielle standing next to him. “Toilet paper?”

Her grandmother squinted at her.

Jake and Danielle laughed.

“Who steals toilet paper, for God’s sake?”

“This ne’er-do-well, obviously.” Grandmother Eileen wiped imaginary lint off her blouse. “It’s hard to find good staff these days.”

Lillian rolled her head around in a circle, which could have been an agreement or an attempt to loosen some tense muscles.

“Can one get anything decent to eat in this…establishment?” Grandmother Eileen asked when nobody seemed to comment on her story.

Danielle leaned over to Jake. “Don’t worry. I think Aunt Eileen gave up eating human flesh since she started wearing dentures.”

Madison leaned closer to Sherry, whispering, “I wouldn’t bet on that.”

Sherry cracked up.

Lillian’s lips twitched while she obviously fought a smile of her own. She turned to Grandmother Eileen. “There’s a buffet over there.”

Grandmother Eileen either hadn’t heard Danielle and Madison or was ignoring them. She wrinkled her nose at Lillian. “Is that food sitting over there hygienic?”

“Of course!” Danielle bellowed.

“Ah, I’ll eat when I get home. I was about to take my leave soon anyway.”

A collective sigh went through the group when she left the Archer a few minutes later.

“Who invited her?” Madison asked.

Danielle raised her hand. “Guilty as charged. How could I know that she would actually come?”

“Don’t be too hard on Eileen,” Lillian said. “She might be a little bit difficult, but she’s still part of the family.”

“But not of mine!” Jake gulped and asked, “Right?”

Sherry chuckled.

Madison couldn’t resist saying, “Well, should your mother and I ever decide to marry, she would become your great grandmother.”

Sherry blanched.

Danielle, who sipped on yet another cocktail, startled. “You’re thinking about getting married?”

Madison felt Sherry’s drilling gaze on her. She probably should have kept her mouth shut. She hoped her shrug looked casual. “We haven’t discussed it yet, but—”

Bill, who had been walking toward them, wrapped his arms around Sherry. “You’re thinking about tying the knot? Congratulations.”

As soon as he let go of her, Sherry shook her head abrasively. “No, we—”

He patted her shoulder. “Don’t worry. Aunt Eileen will drop dead as soon as she learns about this, so you won’t get her as a quasi-mother-in-law.”

As tempting as this thought was, Sherry’s panicked expression made it clear that she’d gone too far. “Sorry to tell you, Bill, but there is no marriage in sight. We like living in sin.”

“Mom, what’s living in sin? And if you two marry, will Madison become my second mom?”

Sherry was white as a sheet. “We won’t be getting married.”

When he opened his mouth again, Sherry said harshly, “Enough.”

Bill turned to Madison. “Did I say the wrong thing?”

“No.” Stupid, stupid, stupid. She should have known that Sherry would react like this. Madison forced a smile and pointed at Sherry. “This is how it looks when someone is being told that they could wake up one day being related to my charming grandmother.”

Everybody laughed except Sherry.

Chapter 23

“What an evening.” Madison closed the bedroom door behind them and leaned against it. “Good thing my grandmother left early.”

Sherry removed her earrings and placed them in the jewel box Madison had given her a few days ago. If she could manage to keep quiet or only say the most essential things until they went to bed, Sherry might be able to hold her fury in check. And tomorrow she would have calmed down enough not to rip Madison’s head off.

Madison seemed to be oblivious to Sherry’s emotions, because she kept laughing and talking. “Bill is really special, isn’t he? Did he manage even one right tone at the karaoke?” Madison stopped at the bathroom door and turned. “Sherry?”

“Mm-hmm?” The necklace followed the earrings.

“You’re so quiet. You okay?”

What did I expect? Even Madison would realize sooner rather than later that Sherry had barely reacted to her constant chatter since they’d left the party.

Now that she thought about it… This was a first. Normally, Madison was the one who wasn’t talking very much. Considering how much she usually drank, the single cocktail she’d consumed tonight couldn’t be the reason for this constant chatter.

“I could ask you the same.” She moved toward the door leading to the living room to get ready in the other bathroom.

Madison rushed to the door and blocked Sherry’s way. “What’s going on here?”

Sherry’s hands turned into fists. She looked from the door to Madison’s confused face. “Step…to…the…side,” Sherry growled between clenched teeth.

Madison’s mouth fell open. “What’s your problem?”

That was all it took for it to break out of Sherry. “What’s my problem? Maybe I don’t like being treated like a slave? You kiss me whenever it pleases you; you order me around, and then you have the nerve to hint in front of your whole family that we might get married.”

“Wait a minute.”

Sherry stepped further into Madison’s personal space, staring up at her. “For your information: I am not your property. We have a contract. But I’m not paid to be your little toy or your entertainment. Or do you think I didn’t get that all that talk about marriage was nothing but a joke at my expense?”

“Hang on a minu—”

“Just so you know, if you ever pull a stunt like that again”—all the subsequent words were emphasized by a stab to Madison’s chest—“I…will…be…gone.” Sherry ripped open the door and stomped to the bathroom.

Sherry had left minutes ago, but Madison was still rooted to the spot. How dare she? Not just that Sherry had snapped at her, but it had also been entirely unjustified.

Not even once had she kissed Sherry without a good reason. Besides, she certainly hadn’t given the impression that she was suffering at any time. And hadn’t she been the one to kiss Madison when they had been talking to her grandmother? “Ha!”

She spun around and headed to the bathroom for a long shower.

Once under the hot spray, she relaxed a little. She’d been so nervous when they entered the Archer. No, actually, she hadn’t been until Sherry’s kiss. Don’t be ridiculous. Why should a little smooching cause her to be nervous? It had to be all this pretending that was making her feel insecure.

Even after showering for half an hour, she still felt unsettled. After drying off and slipping on her pajamas, she left the bathroom.

To her surprise, Sherry wasn’t lying on her side of the bed.

She won’t really pack her things and go, will she? Her whole plan would be lost if she did. Think! Madison could threaten not to pay Jake’s hospital bills if she left.

Madison sank onto her side of the bed. Be honest. At least to yourself. No matter how irrational Sherry was behaving right now, it wasn’t Jake’s fault.

On the other hand… Sherry couldn’t know that she had no intention of going through with this.

Decision made, Madison stood. She didn’t like to threaten Sherry, but it wasn’t as if she had a choice. There was a lot of money at stake. And at the end of the day, that’s what this is all about: money.

She marched across the room, grabbed the door handle, and…

The door was pushed open and banged her face. “Ouch!” She held her throbbing nose.

Sherry peeked around the now open door. “Oh my God. I’m sorry.” She entered the bedroom, closed the door behind her, and led Madison by the elbow to the bed. “I didn’t see you. I’m so sorry.”

Still holding her nose, Madison mumbled, “You’ve apologized already.” She sat down on Sherry’s side of the bed. “You should be happy. You wanted to slap me earlier, didn’t you?”

“I didn’t want to—”

Madison grinned to show that she was joking.

Sherry slapped her playfully. “You.”

“Ouch!” Madison rubbed her shoulder with her free hand. “Haven’t you beaten me up enough already?”

Sherry carefully pulled away Madison’s hand to inspect her nose.

When Sherry’s breath brushed her face, Madison suddenly felt warm all over. “I…I’m fine.” Her voice sounded hoarse to her own ears.

Sherry’s cheeks were slightly flushed. “It seems to be nothing serious.” She swallowed and moved a few inches away.

What the hell was going on here? Madison knew what desire looked like, and for a moment, that’s exactly what had shone in Sherry’s eyes.

Or was that just wishful thinking?

Madison rolled over to her side and slipped under the covers. “You coming?”

For a few seconds, Sherry stared at the floor. Eventually, she lay down and pulled the covers up to her neck. Her hand already halfway to the light switch above the nightstand, she asked, “Can I turn it off?”

“Sure.”

They lay in silence in the dark until Sherry quietly said, “I’m sorry for reacting so emotionally earlier.”

“Why did you? React so strongly, I mean.” Madison faced Sherry even though her eyes hadn’t adapted to the darkness yet to really see her.

“I… Sometimes I have the feeling that you’re taking advantage of this situation.” The anger had left Sherry’s voice, leaving behind only weariness.

She feels as if she’s at your mercy. And wasn’t she? A lump formed in her throat at that thought. “I’m not,” she croaked out. “Taking advantage of you or this situation.” Really, she wasn’t, was she? How often had she kissed Sherry in the past few weeks without it being necessary? “At least not intentionally.” Recalling tonight’s kisses, Madison sat up. “But it was you who kissed me tonight when I was talking to my grandmother.”

Sherry sat up too. “How else was I supposed to shut you up before you could chase away your grandmother for good?” She shook her head. “Convincing your grandmother that we’re a couple is as important to me and Jake as it is to you. Probably even more so.”

She hadn’t been aware of that, but Sherry was right.

“But why did you kiss me instead of trying something else?”

“And what exactly was I supposed to try? Pull you away? Maybe change the topic of conversation?”

Okay, maybe none of that would have stopped her. But now that she thought about it, another question popped into her mind. “What’s it like for you when we kiss?”

“Huh?”

“If I had to kiss a man, I would probably be disgusted by it. Is it…disgusting for you when we kiss?” God, she hated how tiny her voice had become.

Sherry lay back down.

Guess you got your answer. How could she have ever thought Sherry might like kissing her? “Forget it.”

“I’m not disgusted by you or our kisses.”

“But?”

It took a while for Sherry to say, “It’s different if you have to kiss someone for money. Especially if it’s a woman.”

“Different how?”

“Just…different.” She glanced at Madison. “How is it for you when we kiss?”

Hot! “I don’t know.”

Sherry jerked up again until she was sitting beside Madison. “I tried to be honest with you.”

“And?”

“And I would appreciate it if you’d do the same for me.”

What did she want to hear? “It feels good, okay? You’re a good kisser.”

Silence.

Then Sherry said something, but it was so quiet that Madison had to ask her to repeat it.

“You too.”

A huge smile spread across Madison’s face. “You think so?”

“Don’t sound so smug. Besides, I don’t have much to compare it to.”

“What’s that supposed to mean?”

Sherry bit her lip. “It means I’ve kissed Jake’s father, and then there was Andy from the trailer park. And I never kissed him back when he shoved his tongue in my mouth against my will. So I wouldn’t exactly call myself an experienced kisser.”

Sherry had to be kidding. “Do you seriously want to tell me you’ve just been with one man?”

When Sherry kept silent, Madison exclaimed, “Holy crap, you’re almost a virgin!”

“Virgins don’t have kids. And could we please talk about something else? Like, um, how did Danielle react to the news that Ruth is a lesbian?”

It was hard to wrap her mind around the fact that Sherry was so innocent. At least about sex. But it shouldn’t matter. And it was none of her business.

“Madison?”

“Oh, um, she was too drunk when I got to talk to her alone. I thought it better to wait until she’s sober to tell her.”

“Why was she drinking so much anyway?”

Madison laughed. “I think she was sure her beloved mechanic was all over her colleague because they were talking together all evening, and you have to admit they looked quite cozy.”

They both lay back down.

“I’ll call Danielle tomorrow to deliver the happy news.”

“She seems to be pretty taken with Ruth.”

“Stranger things have happened.” Madison looked at Sherry and then at the ceiling.

“Were you ever in love? Really in love, I mean?”

“I thought so at one time, but I’m not so sure anymore.” Madison searched Sherry’s shadow-cast face. “What about you?”

“No.” Sherry’s covers rustled. “I know better now.”

“But you loved Jake’s father, didn’t you?” That’s what she had told her back then. That when you loved someone, you hoped they were going to love you back. “He didn’t love you as much as you loved him, right?”

Sherry sighed. “Jimmy left me when I told him that I was pregnant. But maybe things would have been different if I had told him even once that I loved him.”

“How could he pretend to love you and then just leave you like that?”

“It’s strange hearing those words from you.”

Even though she was sure Sherry hadn’t meant to hurt her, her words stung. “Do you think I would have left you, had it been me and not him?” Did Sherry think of her as irresponsible? She didn’t want to hear the answer to that, so she hastily said, “Forget I asked. Tell me instead, did you love him?”

Thankfully, Sherry let her first question go. “No. I wanted to be loved; that’s why I got involved with him. But what I truly wanted, what I needed, was a friend. Not a man getting me pregnant and taking off.”

How lonely must Sherry have been to start something with the first guy promising to be there for her? Good that she didn’t need love as much as Sherry obviously did.

They didn’t say anything for a while until Madison’s mouth started talking as if it had a life of its own. “What do you think it’s like to be in love?”

“I think you should ask Danielle about that.”

“I guess you’re right. On the other hand, it doesn’t really matter. Some people are just not made to fall in love.”

Sherry hummed in agreement.

“Sherry?”

“Yeah?”

“Are we okay?” It was a stupid question. Totally unnecessary. Sherry was working for her and that was it. But Madison still held her breath while waiting for an answer.

Sherry took Madison’s hand. “We’re good. Just don’t overdo it with your pretend affection, okay?”

Madison squeezed her hand then let go. “Okay. Good night.”

“Good night, Madison.” Sherry turned away from her.

Madison closed her eyes, hoping that sleep would come soon and that tomorrow would be less confusing than today had been.

Chapter 24

“I really could get used to this,” Madison said, as she had almost every evening for the past weeks when they sat together at the dinner table. Humming, she shoved another forkful of vegetables into her mouth.

“Who cooked for you when you lived alone?” Rita Mae asked while passing the salad bowl around.

“Nobody. I got something delivered or heated something up in the microwave.”

“Always?” Jake asked.

Madison shrugged. “I don’t like to cook.”

“Madison?”

“Yes, grasshopper?”

“I can’t decide on what costume to wear for Halloween. Pirate or cowboy, what’s better?”

Was it okay for her to answer that? Don’t be ridiculous. This is about a costume, nothing else. And since their fight when Jake had started school almost two months ago, Sherry had not reprimanded her even once for voicing her opinion about something to Jake.

Sherry leaned over to her and whispered, “It’s his first real Halloween. I didn’t allow him to go from door to door asking for candy when we lived at the trailer park.”

A wise decision, without a doubt.

“What’s Tony’s costume?” she asked Jake.

“Darth Vader.”

“A classic,” Madison said with her mouth half full.

“I don’t know Darth Vader,” Jake said. “Is it better than being a cowboy or a pirate?”

Despite their fears upon first meeting her, Mrs. Burlinski didn’t seem to mind Tony spending time with Jake. At least at school. Halloween was going to be the first time they would spend with each other outside of that. Maybe that was another reason for Jake being so picky about his costume.

After the death of her parents, Halloween had stopped being special for Madison. When she’d moved in with her grandmother, she had lost all her friends to enjoy it with and the witch didn’t care about Halloween at all. Even though it should be her favorite holiday, given how scary she’s all the time.

Madison suppressed a chuckle and raised her glass of water. “Tonight we’re going to watch the first of the old Star Wars movies. After that, you can decide what to wear.”

“Columbo airs tonight,” Rita Mae mumbled.

“So what? Watch it in your room,” Madison said.

“With Columbo, it’s about every detail.” Rita Mae gesticulated enthusiastically. “The big TV in the living room is much better for that.”

Before Madison knew what was happening, everybody opened their mouths to join in with the debate. At least nobody was suggesting they watch anything on the huge TV in her bedroom. She held up both hands to gain control again. “Enough already. We’re watching Star Wars and that’s it.”

When all went silent, she realized how surreal this was. Just a few months ago, she would have headed from club to club, drinking herself into a stupor and having meaningless sexual encounters. Now all she had in mind was what they would watch on TV and where. And the weirdest part in all of this was that she liked it—much more than she had ever enjoyed spending time with the guys.

None of her so-called friends had so much as sent her a text message recently. Not even Phil. But surprisingly, she didn’t miss any of them.

Janice and Danielle were the only ones she spent time with nowadays. And Sherry. She shook her head. Who would have thought that she would ever be surrounded by women and not sleep with any of them?

“Eat your vegetables,” Sherry told Jake, but Madison sped up her eating too at her stern voice.

“Yes, Mom,” he said, and Madison almost repeated it.

When she became aware of her childish behavior, she held her head up extra high. “By the way, Danielle finally asked her mechanic out on a date and wants us to join them because she’s terrified to go alone.”

Sherry looked up. “Wow. It took her long enough.”

“Who’s asked her mechanic out?” Rita Mae asked. “And why would you join them on their date?”

Sherry grinned. “I think we should start this at the beginning.” She took a deep breath. “It all started with Danielle asking Madison for help about her expertise regarding women.”

“Expertise?” Rita Mae laughed.

“Hey, that’s not funny.” Madison stood when they were done eating. “I know plenty about women and I’m irresistible to them.”

“I have no problems resisting you,” Rita Mae said.

Sherry stood as well and collected the dishes. Leaning closer to Madison, she whispered, “Me neither.”

Madison liked the feel of Sherry’s breath on her ear, but her self-confidence had taken a blow. “However, Danielle has arranged to meet her sweetheart at the movies. Are you game for a lesbian double date?”

Sherry’s eyes lit up like a Christmas tree. “We’re going to the movies?”

“If you want.”

“Oh, I haven’t been to the movies in forever.”

“Can I come too?” Jake asked.

“Not this time, grasshopper, because it’s late in the evening.”

“Oh, c’mon.”

“Wait a minute,” Rita Mae said. “Danielle is a lesbian too?”

Madison picked up the almost empty plates when she realized what she was doing. What the heck? She was paying Rita Mae to do this. To make a point—even if just to herself—she put the plates back on the table. If Sherry thought she had to help, that was fine, but it had nothing to do with her. “I don’t know about her being a lesbian, but she’s very much into this hot and definitely female mechanic.”

“Mom, what’s a lesbian?”

Everybody froze.

Sherry paled and swallowed. “A…a lesbian is a woman who loves women instead of men.”

Jake pondered that for a moment while looking back and forth between Sherry and Madison. “So you and Madison are—?”

Rita Mae jumped up, took two bowls from the table, and went to the kitchen without commenting.

“What’s up with her?” Jake asked quietly.

Madison breathed a sigh of relief that Jake’s line of thought seemed to be interrupted for the time being. She feigned a lightness she didn’t feel and leaned over to him. “I think she’s jealous. She wants to go to the movies too.”

Jake nodded. When he didn’t ask more questions, Sherry’s shoulders relaxed visibly while she continued to clean the table.

The following evening, Madison and Sherry were arriving late to the movie theater.

After Madison had parked the car in the underground garage, Sherry stopped her from getting out despite the time. “It’s been a while since Lillian’s birthday party, so I wanted to remind you of what we talked about afterward back then.”

That had been many weeks ago. “What exactly are you referring to?” Madison undid her seat belt. “We’re talking all the time.” Not that she minded. In the past, she hadn’t liked to talk much. Perhaps it hadn’t been the talking she didn’t like but the topics of conversation.

She and Sherry spoke about literally anything, especially about things that were important to them, like when Madison did something Sherry had a problem with or the other way around. It had taken some getting used to, but over time Madison had started seeing the benefits of talking about problems instead of ignoring them or drowning them in booze. Deep down, she even had to admit that she liked talking with Sherry. A positive side effect of it was that the more they spoke, the fewer misunderstandings they had and the more convincing they were as a family.

“Right?”

Madison blinked. “What was that?”

Sherry unbuckled her seat belt. “Have you heard anything I just said?”

“I, uh, yeah. But I’m not sure that I got it a—”

“Madison, admit that you haven’t listened.”

“I did. Really. Um…”

Sherry waved her off. “Save your breath.” She pushed open the passenger door. “I was talking about our agreement not to overdo it in public.”

“Overdo?”

Sherry raised her hand and ticked off the list on her fingers. “No passionate kissing, no groping, no sexual innuendos or—”

“Wait a minute. You make me sound like a pervert who can’t stop touching you.” Since Lillian’s birthday a few weeks ago, she and Sherry hadn’t kissed at all. And the only touches between them had been accidental—at work exchanging dishes or when she helped Sherry into her coat after their shifts. Or while they had been watching movies or playing board games with Jake or Rita Mae.

Now that she thought about it, she remembered more fleeting touches. Like when they passed each other in the hallway or the kitchen. And then there had been this one time when she’d woken up with her head on Sherry’s shoulder. Thankfully, Sherry hadn’t woken up to see it, and Madison had moved away instantly. Okay, maybe not as fast as she could have.

How strange that she could recall every single touch between them. In the past, she had never paid attention to things like that. But considering how sensitive Sherry was about touches, it probably made sense. “Haven’t I behaved like the perfect gentlewoman since we talked about it?”

“True, but except for working at the Archer, we haven’t been out in public together since.” Sherry exited the car and waited until Madison had gotten out too before she said, “I just wanted to mention it again.”

“You’ve made your point clear. Let’s go.”

Taking each other’s hands, they strolled toward the lobby. Yes, holding hands was part of their roles, but Madison could admit to herself that it felt good to feel Sherry’s hand in hers.

Danielle and the mechanic were standing about two arm’s lengths apart, looking everywhere but at each other. Both were silent.

“Are they just shy or is this the date from hell?” Sherry whispered in her ear.

Madison ignored the familiar tingle caused by Sherry’s warm breath and shrugged. “Let’s find out.” Louder, she said, “Danielle!”

Her cousin and Ruth sighed in unison as if relieved. “Madison, Sherry, you remember Ruth, right?”

“Of course,” Madison said.

After shaking hands, they studied today’s movie program.

“So, ladies, see anything you like?”

Sherry pinched her side.

“Ouch!”

“Behave,” Sherry whispered.

God, how she loved it when Sherry whispered with her hot breath into her ear. Even when she scolded her.

Again she tried to ignore her physical reaction. “Get your mind out of the gutter. I was talking about the movies.” Lowering her voice, she asked, “What did you think I was talking about?”

Sherry frowned at her, but soon it turned into a smile.

When Madison saw Danielle and Ruth following their interaction, she couldn’t resist any longer and gave Sherry a fleeting kiss on those soft lips.

The romantic comedy had been playing a few minutes already, but Sherry just couldn’t get into it. It wasn’t as if the movie was boring or anything, but because the armrest between their seats couldn’t be put down, Madison was sitting close. It was very distracting. But for the life of her, she couldn’t figure out why. It wasn’t as if she and Madison were on a real date.

And aside from the short kiss in the lobby, Madison was behaving in an exemplary manner so far.

Madison reached over to the cup holder on Sherry’s side, grabbed their shared Coke, and took the straw between her lips.

Sherry’s gaze was glued to how Madison sucked on the straw. Her mouth went dry. As soon as Madison returned the Coke, she took a big swallow herself.

Madison stared at her. “Pretty dry in here.”

Sherry leaned closer to whisper, “Yeah. When you want to drink some more, tell me and I can hand it over, okay?”

Madison looked back to the screen and nodded.

After a while, the first kiss between the protagonists came. It was quite passionate. Not for the first time, memories of the kisses she had shared with Madison at the party with Phil and at Lillian’s birthday flooded her senses. The kisses had been so soft, and how Madison had held her when—

“Sherry?”

“Huh?”

“Danielle just asked if we want to join them for a drink after the movie.” Leaning closer, she added, “It’s more of a begging, really. She’s afraid to go alone with Ruth.”

Sherry licked her dry lips. “Yeah, sure.”

“Good.” Madison focused on the movie again.

Sherry used the chance to look over at Madison and try to make sense of what was going on with herself. Yes, she was as inexperienced when it came to matters of the heart as she was about sexual attraction, but she wasn’t blind or stupid.

As much as she had tried to ignore it over the past few weeks, she couldn’t deny it any longer; she enjoyed Madison’s kisses. And the plan to avoid the kisses to leave her confusion behind had failed miserably because she thought about them more often than not.

She could lie to the world however she wanted to, but she had to be honest with herself: She felt attracted to Madison. She was attracted to her in a way she had never been before to anyone else.

But I’m straight!

She wasn’t interested in women. Not like that. Okay, maybe she wasn’t really interested in men like that either, but that was more because she hadn’t met the right one yet, not because she was gay.

She liked Madison. Not the arrogant and self-centered Madison, but the attentive, friendly, and thoughtful one. Initially, she’d thought the nice Madison was a façade that only occasionally appeared. Now she knew she opposite seemed to be the case. The old Madison hadn’t been the real one.

But regardless of whether she liked Madison, how could she be sure what was real?

Maybe she was so engrossed in her role as Madison’s partner that her mind was leading her to believe she really had feelings for her beyond friendship.

She breathed a sigh of relief. Yeah, that had to be it.

But why did she still have this nagging feeling that there was more to it than a confused mind?

Five minutes more and Ruth will run screaming. Madison couldn’t believe how the usually talkative Danielle stared silently down into her third cocktail.

Ruth’s expression varied between confusion and disappointment. She had tried a few times to start a conversation with Danielle but had finally given up after getting nothing but one-word answers.

“Danielle, you’ve been here before, right?” Madison asked when she couldn’t stand the silence any longer.

Danielle nodded.

This had to end. One way or another. Madison stood. “Could you show me where the restrooms are?”

Danielle raised her hand as if to point in one direction, but then she let her hand drop to her lap and stood too. “Sure.”

The doors of the restroom had barely fallen shut behind them when Madison whirled around. “What the hell are you doing?”

Danielle covered her face with both hands. “God, I’m the worst date ever.”

“That’s an understatement. If I were Ruth, I would have run screaming after your second cocktail. What’s your problem?”

Her hands fell to her sides as if they weighed a ton. “I’ve got no idea. When she’s close, I just can’t speak.”

“How did you manage to ask her out, then?”

Danielle inspected her fidgeting hands. “Well, she kind of asked.”

“Kind of?”

“I was too much of a chickenshit to ask her. So I told everybody at the garage I had a gift card and asked if anyone wanted to join me for a movie.”

“But how could you—?”

“I chose a day when I knew the guys were planning to watch football.”

“I still don’t get it. How could you know that Ruth wouldn’t want to join them?”

“I heard her once say that she doesn’t care much about football.”

“Ah, so when the others declined she came up to you and asked if you would take her.”

Danielle nodded and stumbled to one of the sinks to wash first her hands and then her face. She peered at her reflection. “I need another drink.”

“Bad idea. She’ll think you need beer goggles to find her attractive.”

Danielle groaned into the paper towel she’d used to dry her face.

Never would Madison have thought Danielle to be shy. It was a completely new side of her. “Why don’t you just go back outside and make her yours?”

Through the mirror she gazed at Madison. “But how?”

“First of all, start using answers that contain more than one word.”

Danielle spread her arms in a helpless gesture. “I really have no idea what’s up with me.”

“But I do. You have the hots for her. Stevie Wonder could see that from a mile away.”

“Why can’t it be as easy as with you and Sherry?”

Madison needed all her self-control to suppress a snort.

“It’s obvious how crazy in love you two are. You look at each other, and it seems as if your eyes do all the talking. I…I didn’t see it at first, but now I don’t know how I ever missed it.”

Madison’s eyebrows seemed to have a life of their own when they hiked up. Were she and Sherry really such good actresses?

“I mean” —Danielle blew an unruly strand of hair out of her face—“how you look at Sherry sometimes when you think nobody else is watching you and—”

“Nonsense!” Madison could have slapped herself. Why was she denying it? If Danielle thought her to be totally in love with Sherry, great.

Danielle touched her on the arm. “Even when you thought you were in love with me, you never looked at me like that. And I can’t blame you. Sherry is gorgeous. And it’s obvious that she feels just as much for you as you for her.”

Danielle’s words should have made her happy, but instead they left her with an unsettling feeling she couldn’t name.

“God, what wouldn’t I do to get Ruth to look at me like Sherry looks at you? This dreamy smile she sometimes sports when she follows your every movement.”

Sherry did that? Idiot. She’s playing her role convincingly. Same as you. It wasn’t anything but pretending, not for her and certainly not for Sherry. Sherry’s clear boundaries and pointing out that this was nothing but a business deal for her didn’t leave any room for doubt. Besides, Madison wasn’t exactly a lovable person. Quite the opposite, in fact.

“Enough about us. This isn’t about me and Sherry but about you and Ruth.”

“You’re right. So what do you suggest?”

“So, as I see it, Ruth is interested in you.”

“You really think so?”

“Why else would she have jumped at the chance to go to the movies with you?”

“Because she likes going to the movies and was out of money?”

Madison chuckled. “Are we by any chance a little insecure?”

Danielle shrugged.

“I have to admit your pick-up techniques leave a lot to be desired, my dear cousin. You’ve got no reason to be so insecure. You’re quite a catch. Remember that when we go back in a minute.”

“Thanks.” Danielle sighed. “But I don’t need to work on my pick-up techniques because I’m not planning on asking anybody out but Ruth.”

“Wow, you’re really head over heels.”

Danielle blushed.

“Okay, enough chitchat. Here’s my plan…”

When they walked back toward the table a few minutes later, Sherry and Ruth were sitting side by side, deep in conversation.

It seemed cozy, and Madison’s stomach was churning.

“Oh, no,” Danielle whispered. “Do you think Ruth is into Sherry?”

Madison’s teeth were clenched so strongly together that all she could do was shake her head.

Ruth laughed at something Sherry said and laid a hand on Sherry’s arm.

“Are we interrupting something?” Madison asked when they reached the table.

As if they had been caught, Ruth stood abruptly and walked back to her side of the table.

“Of course not,” Sherry said with a confused expression on her face. “We were just speaking about…the Archer.”

“Aha, sure.” Madison flopped down next to Sherry.

Danielle sank into her seat beside Ruth but kept staring at her lap.

So much for my plan. All of Danielle’s self-esteem had deflated like a pierced balloon. And what was going on between Ruth and Sherry? Don’t be ridiculous; Sherry is into men.

Ruth leaned toward Danielle and whispered something in her ear.

Danielle stared at her. “Really?”

Ruth nodded.

Danielle’s cheeks turned a deep shade of pink.

“Would you please excuse us for a moment?” Sherry pulled Madison with her when she stood.

Neither Ruth nor Danielle reacted to Sherry, who pulled Madison toward the restrooms.

From there, Madison could see Ruth and Danielle finally start to talk. Or to be more exact, they were whispering to each other, their foreheads almost touching as if sharing deep secrets.

“What the hell just happened?”

“I told Ruth that Danielle is head over heels with her, but she’s too nervous to do anything about it.”

“Oh.”

“Ruth was totally relieved because she’s crazy about Danielle too. She can’t get Danielle out of her head, but she didn’t know what to make of her behavior. Especially tonight.”

“And now?”

“If I’m not mistaken, Ruth just told Danielle that she likes her very much.”

“That’s what she just whispered?” God, they were behaving like teenagers. Cute. Then it hit her, and she made a face. “I hope she doesn’t follow my advice.”

“What did you tell her to do?”

“I might have told her that she should put her hand on Ruth’s upper thigh and move it up slowly to show her interest until she—”

“Please tell me you’re kidding.”

Madison flicked away an invisible piece of lint on her sweater.

“Of all the advice you could give, why did you tell her something stupid like that?”

Madison’s head snapped up. “Because it’s always worked for me.”

“Madison, this is about two women falling in love, not two horny women trying to hook up for the night.”

“I get it.” Now. “And don’t worry, I doubt Danielle will remember anything I said to her.” She pointed to the two women at the table, deeply lost in conversation. “So, what do we do now?”

“Take our leave, what else?” Sherry smiled. “We have to learn to adjust out tactics, but beside that, we’re a good team and I like working with you.”

“Me too. It was fun.” Looking back to the lovebirds at the table, who were now holding hands while chatting animatedly, Madison remembered Sherry’s words from one night a few weeks back about asking Danielle how it felt to be in love. She smiled at Sherry, who was standing close to her. “Thank you for tonight. It wasn’t exactly part of your job and—”

“My pleasure.” She put a warm hand on Madison’s arm and gazed deeply into Madison’s eyes, before stepping back. “Let’s go.”

God, how much she wanted to take Sherry in her arms or at least caress her soft cheek. Who would have thought that she was the touchy-feely type?

Giving in to her impulse, if only for a moment, she took Sherry’s hand. “Okay, let’s wish our lovebirds a good night.”

Chapter 25

“Tony, wait!” Jake, in his cute Luke Skywalker costume, ran after his friend.

“You really didn’t need to come along,” Mrs. Burlinski said for the maybe tenth time. “I could have kept an eye on both of them without you taking time off.”

Walking sometimes beside her, but mostly behind her on the sidewalk, Sherry and Madison tried to ignore Mrs. Burlinski’s homophobic antics.

The woman kept at least ten feet between her and them, as if homosexuality were contagious.

Madison winked at Sherry.

“We just moved here a few weeks back and are glad to go out for a change,” Sherry said. “Besides, I like to keep an eye on Jake.” Never would Sherry tell her that it was Jake’s first real Halloween and that she didn’t want to miss it, or Mrs. Burlinski might start asking questions about where they had lived before.

Mrs. Burlinski looked over her shoulder and opened her mouth as if wanting to say something when her gaze landed on Sherry’s and Madison’s intertwined hands. She just nodded and spun away again.

“Hey,” Madison whispered in her ear. “You okay?”

Madison’s warm breath caused goose bumps to erupt all over her body. “Um, sure. Why?”

“You’re looking so serious.” Barely audibly, she added, “Ignore the scarecrow and her antics.”

Sherry had to grin. The nickname for Mrs. Burlinski fit. “Thank you for coming along today.” She’d wanted to decline at first when Madison offered to come along, but now she was glad she had agreed. It was nice having support against Mrs. Burlinski, and Madison’s presence also seemed to be important for Jake.

Madison squeezed her hand.

Jake and Tony came back carrying their huge candy bags.

“Mom, can you take these for me? They’re so heavy.”

Sherry let go of Madison’s hand to take them. She immediately missed the warmth, which wasn’t surprising considering how cold it was tonight. “Baby, don’t overdo it.”

Madison stared into the bags. “When are you planning to eat all this candy? There’s enough to feed your whole class for a week.”

“Madison’s right,” Sherry said. “I’m sorry, Jake, but I think you’ve got enough.”

Jake looked at them as if she’d told him he would have to spend the next week eating broccoli. “D-does that mean we have to go home already?”

“Already?” Sherry asked. “You and Tony have been trick-or-treating for more than two hours.”

“But, Mom!” Jake turned to Madison. “Please! Just five more minutes.”

Madison raised her hands in defeat. “Sorry, grasshopper, but I can’t help you with this.”

Jake stomped his feet. “It’s not fair!”

“Tony also has enough,” Mrs. Burlinski said and took the bags from her son.

“Why do I have to go home just because Jake’s moms say—?”

“Madison isn’t my mom.”

Sherry saw Madison’s face tense. She probably would have preferred Jake to tell everybody that she was his second mother. But even though she couldn’t prevent them from getting closer over time, Sherry never forgot that in truth they weren’t really a family.

Mrs. Burlinski tilted her head as if unsure how to react to Jake’s words.

Tony also seemed at a loss for words, because he just scratched his neck, knocking his Darth Vader mask in the process.

Madison ended the awkward moment by taking Jake’s bags from Sherry. “I’ll take these. Let’s go.”

Jake seemed as confused at Tony and his mother for a second as he looked between them all. But when Madison started to walk away, he said, “Wait. I want to say bye to Tony.”

“Okay,” Sherry said. “But hurry up.”

Jake nodded and stepped in front of Tony. Smiling at him, he said, “Bye.”

Tony took off his mask and smiled back. “Bye.”

Sherry smiled. Had she ever been so cute?

The surface beneath Sherry shook. An earthquake! Her eyes popped open, but beside the mattress she was lying on, nothing was shaking. She peeked to the side and stared into Madison’s wide-open eyes just a few inches away from hers.

Sherry flinched. “M-Madison?”

“I can’t sleep.”

Sherry turned onto her back and yawned. “Why can’t you sleep? What are you thinking about?”

“I don’t know.”

“Really?”

“Sherry, aren’t you tired?”

“What do you think? But somebody just woke me up.” She smiled to take the sting out of her words. “So tell me what’s up.”

Madison’s lips twitched. “You mean beside the fact that an incredibly attractive woman is lying beside me in bed?”

Sherry’s breath caught. Calm down. She’s just trying to make a joke. “Oh, where is she? That explains why it seems so crowded in here sometimes.”

Madison didn’t laugh. “What will you do when this is over?” She gestured between them.

Madison’s change of topic made her head spin. “I don’t know,” she answered honestly. “I guess it depends on how long it’s going to last. Maybe I can keep my job at the Archer. I make much more there than I did at the diner, on some days even more than at the diner and the market I worked at combined. Jake will have to change schools again, but at least I would be able to afford an apartment if I found a good second job. And I don’t know, maybe Rita Mae and I could share an apartment.”

“Sherry, I…” Madison shook her head. “It’ll all work out.”

Why was Madison thinking about their agreement? Was there anything she hadn’t told her? “Do you think we’ll be done soon?”

“My grandmother is still fresh as a daisy, and I don’t think anything has changed yet.”

“You’re wrong. She wouldn’t be as opposed to me if she weren’t buying it. I mean, she hasn’t invited us a second time and after Lillian’s birthday—”

“She isn’t opposed to you. But she thinks you’re with me for the money.”

Sherry grinned. “Well, she’s not so far off there.”

Madison didn’t smile.

What was going on with her tonight?

“As long as she believes we’re together, she at least thinks I’m settling down. That’s a start, I guess.”

“What I don’t get is why she would think I’m just after your money.”

“It’s not like you were swimming in money before you met me. But I think mostly it’s because she can’t imagine that anybody could develop real feelings for me and vice versa. I’m pretty sure she thinks that from my side it’s all about sex.”

She couldn’t deny that Madison’s motive made sense when you were Mrs. Fielding, but… “Why would she think that I couldn’t have real feelings for you?”

“I guess she knows me too well.”

A lump formed in Sherry’s throat at Madison’s implication. “You don’t seriously think that nobody could love you for the person you are, do you?”

Madison rolled onto her back too, shaking the bed again, and stared at the ceiling. For a long time, she said nothing. Sherry thought that she had fallen asleep until Madison said, “Let’s be honest. I’m not really a lovable person.” She rolled away from Sherry. “We should try to sleep.”

A part of her wanted to tell Madison that she was lovable, that she was changing, and that Sherry would probably miss her when this ended. But her mouth wouldn’t open to say it. Frustrated and confused, she turned away too and pulled the sheet up to her chin. “Good night.”

“Good night.”

“Sleep well, Madison.”

“You too.”

For probably the hundredth time, Madison’s knife slipped off the potato she was chopping, almost cutting her in the process. Why the heck had she come up with the idea of helping Rita Mae in the kitchen?

You know exactly why. You were bored as hell, sitting on the couch flipping through crap on TV.

In the past, it had never gotten boring. And ironically, now that she had a job, boredom was an almost constant companion. At least whenever Danielle’s working schedule gave her time off while Sherry was working. Maybe she should call Phil.

No, when they’d talked the last time, he’d said that he would call her back, and he hadn’t even texted her all these weeks. She didn’t want to chase him, but maybe she should—

Rita Mae peeked over her shoulder. “One potato more and we’ll have enough for Jake’s plate.”

Usually, Madison would have told Rita Mae off, but at least she gave her something to do. Even if it was just peeling and cutting potatoes. “I really wouldn’t mind a few tips, you know?”

“Where would be the fun in that?” Rita Mae grinned. “You’re quite entertaining as it is.” When Madison frowned at her, Rita Mae sighed. “Okay. For starters, I wouldn’t use the cheese knife.”

Madison went to the drawer and got out another knife, holding it up like a trophy.

“That’s a filet knife.”

Grumbling, she got out another one.

“Are you kidding me?”

“Wrong again?”

“That’s a bread knife.” She stepped beside Madison and got something much smaller out. “Try a potato peeler.”

Madison took it and went back to the kitchen counter where five tiny potatoes waited. “Since when do I have so many different kitchen utensils?”

“I bought a whole collection from the shopping channel.”

“Oh.”

“You really hadn’t cooked anything before we moved in, had you?”

“I have money.” Why stand in the kitchen when you could pay people to do it for you?

“You do indeed. But still you’re peeling and cutting potatoes at the moment. Why?”

“Danielle sent me home after the lunch crowd.” Maybe she sounded like a petulant child, but she didn’t care. She slammed the potato peeler onto the cutting board. “She needs Sherry but not me.”

Rita Mae leaned beside her against the counter. “Have you asked Danielle why she’s sending you home early more often than not?”

“I don’t have to. Sherry is a great waitress, and I’m…”

“You’re what?”

Madison rolled her eyes. “Maybe Danielle doesn’t like how I talk to customers.”

Rita Mae smirked. “And how do you talk to them?”

Madison shrugged.

“Sherry mentioned that you sometimes…” Rita Mae twirled her hand as if searching for the right words, “aren’t that friendly with the customers.”

Sherry and Rita Mae talked about her behind her back? She smashed the potato peeler against the countertop and crossed her arms in front of her chest. “I’m friendly to everybody.”

“Are you, now?”

Madison huffed and unfolded her arms to continue peeling the potato, which was gradually becoming smaller and smaller. “Okay. Maybe sometimes I could be a little bit friendlier. But some people think that just because they’re paying a few bucks to eat and drink they deserve to be treated like kings and queens but can treat us like we’re nothing.”

“I see. After all, when you go out somewhere, you always treat the people serving you with the utmost respect, right?”

“Righ…” Madison glared at Rita Mae when she realized what she was trying to do. “That’s different.”

“How so?”

“I’m the owner.”

“Oh, now I get it. So it’s okay when the customers want to be served promptly and from a friendly waitress as long it’s, let’s say Sherry and not you, right?”

That’s not how she’d meant it. “You know what I mean.”

“No, not really.”

“I…Sherry is my partner—at least in the eyes of everyone else—so she’s like the owner too.”

“So, you expect the customers to ask about the ownership and the staff’s private relations before they order a coffee?” She got a pan out of a cabinet.

Madison expected Rita Mae to say more, but she simply turned on the stove. Then she heated a pan with a dollop of butter and cut vegetables into it.

What did Rita Mae want to hear from her? Should she pretend to be a common waitress? Wait! Hadn’t Grandmother Eileen talked about Sherry being a common waitress back at Lillian’s birthday party?

God, I’m just like her!

“Rita Mae?”

“Yeah?”

“Do you think I’m a snob?”

Rita Mae shook the pan and walked toward her. “Do you really want to know what I think?” When Madison nodded, she said, “First of all, I think you should keep peeling and cutting if you want to finish on time.”

Madison studied her half-peeled potato and the little potato peeler in her hands. Determined, she continued.

“Now, you think yourself better than us. But the only thing that sets you apart from us ordinary people is your money.”

And education. Madison paused. Even that she had gotten through her money, and it didn’t make her a better person. “I’ve never pretended to be something better.”

“No?” Rita Mae went back to the stove and shook the pan again. “Could have fooled me. By the way, who’s picking up Jake today?”

Oh, shit! Madison dropped the potato peeler and the potato. “Me. Sherry asked me to because she’s working longer today.” She rushed out of the kitchen. After putting on her shoes and coat, she peeked around the corner at Rita Mae and pointed toward her cutting board. “You sure you can handle this alone?”

Rita Mae snorted. “I’ll try.”

Sherry closed the apartment door and yawned. Danielle had promised to bring her home at six, but it had been almost eight before they could depart because the beer dispenser had malfunctioned and needed to be fixed.

She hung her coat up and went to Jake’s room. After her long day, she more than deserved to look at her sleeping angel. But when she drew near to his room, she heard quiet voices through the half-open door.

“‘But why did you do that?’ the frog asked and ribbited loudly.”

Madison? Why was she reading to Jake? Where was Rita Mae? There was no light in the living room, so she had to be in her room.

Sherry looked into Jake’s room and had to rub her eyes because she couldn’t believe what she saw.

Madison was sitting on the edge of his bed, immersed in the fairy tale book in her hands. She caressed Jake’s head and smiled brightly at him when he joined in the fairy tale he knew by heart.

This soft side of Madison stirred an emotional rollercoaster that left Sherry breathless. Even if she’d wanted to, she would have been unable to name any of her feelings right now.

All she knew with a sudden clarity was that she wanted to be closer to Madison.

Listening to her voice was hypnotic and calmed her down more than anything else she could think of. Nonsense. I need a good night’s sleep, that’s all. Then I’ll stop having such weird thoughts. And having such feelings.

It didn’t matter how much more drawn she felt to Madison each passing day. They still had a contractual agreement. Sherry and Jake had to pretend to be her family, and that was all.

But Jake wasn’t pretending. Sherry squeezed her eyes shut as if she could shut out reality by doing so. She had to protect Jake.

When she opened her eyes again, she saw Jake snuggling closer to Madison. A smile stole itself onto Sherry’s face, but she forced it away.

“The water flea jumped on the back of the frog,” Madison read, “and together they started their journey to the duck pond at the other side of the hill.” She placed the book onto the nightstand before giving Jake a kiss to his forehead. “Sleep well, grasshopper.”

Madison’s eyes shone with…with love? Sherry’s chest felt as if a huge weight was squeezing the air out of her lungs. Yes, Madison really seemed to have honest feelings for him. No! It has to be just for show. She wants Jake to tell everybody that she’s his mother too. Sherry opened the door more fully and entered.

“Mom!” Jake sat and held up his arms for her.

Madison stood to make room for her. She smiled a little insecurely, but her mouth fell when Sherry looked at her.

Taking her gaze off Madison, she bent down to Jake and wrapped her arms around him. “Sorry I’m so late.” Her voice sounded hoarse to her own ears.

“Madison was reading me a story.”

“I know, baby.” She let go of Jake and gave him a kiss on the forehead. Startled, she realized that it was the same place where Madison had kissed him a few moments ago. “Go to sleep now.”

Jake pouted.

“If you sleep now, I’ll read you two stories tomorrow.”

After a short hesitation, Jake nodded. “You can read one and Madison can read the other one, yeah?”

Madison sent Sherry a questioning gaze.

“We’ll see.” Sherry tucked him in and gave him another kiss on the forehead, this time on a slightly different spot. “Sleep well, baby.”

“Night, Mom. Night, Madison.”

“Good night, grasshopper.” Madison waved and left the room.

After Sherry had switched off the light and closed the door, she asked Madison, “Where’s Rita Mae?”

“In her room. She’s got a headache and asked me to tuck Jake in.”

Madison had just helped Rita Mae out. That was all. And maybe she really liked him. What’s not to like? Sherry rubbed the bridge of her nose. Why was this so complicated?

“You look tired.”

“I’m fine. Nothing a little sleep can’t fix. I’m going to get ready for bed.” When she headed to the bathroom, it felt as if Madison was watching her.

Chapter 26

After long deliberation, Madison had convinced herself that she obviously had to be the adult in her friendship with Phil. But now, after sending him her fifth text message this week alone, she’d had enough. If Phil didn’t respond to this message either, he would be dead to her.

The bedroom door opened, and Sherry entered. Just like in the past nine days—since Madison had read Jake his bedtime story—she closed the door quietly and walked to the bed in silence. Slipping under the covers, she turned away from Madison. “Good night.”

Madison placed her cell phone on the nightstand. “Night.” She switched off the light and lay down too. But after a few moments, she couldn’t take it anymore. Sitting up, she switched on the light again.

No reaction from Sherry.

Madison couldn’t believe she was the one saying this, but she couldn’t help herself. “Sherry, talk to me.”

Hesitantly, Sherry faced her. “What about?”

“I’m not a moron, you now? I see how you’ve been ignoring me since you found me reading to Jake.”

Sherry rubbed her forehead. Did she have a headache? “Jake is…quite attached to you.”

Bingo! “I know.” She studied the drawing he had made for her last month, hanging over the bed. “To use your words, I’m also quite attached to him.”

Sherry looked at the drawing too. Had she been surprised that Madison had put it up there or about her admission now of having feelings for Jake?

“I was so naïve, you know?”

“Naïve? Why?”

“I thought we’d move in with you, play our roles, and go our separate ways. Just like that.” She snipped her fingers.

Madison was almost afraid to ask. “And what do you think now?”

Sherry sat up too. “You’ve become incredibly important to Jake in a very short period of time. And who knows how long our pretend relationship might last? You said it yourself: it might take years. It…” Her voice broke. “It will break his heart when we leave.”

She wanted to ask, and what about you? But instead she said, “I told you that I don’t want him to be hurt, and it’s as true now as it was the first time I said it.”

After a while, Sherry nodded.

That’s all? A simple nod? What else did Sherry want to hear? Damn, if only she were better at this emotional stuff. Frustrated by the situation and by herself, she switched off the light, lay back down, and turned away from Sherry. “Good night.”

There was no answer from Sherry, but then, suddenly, she touched Madison’s shoulder.

Madison jerked around to face her.

Sherry was very close to her, but because of the darkness, Madison couldn’t make out her features very well. “What is it?” She whispered because speaking louder would have felt wrong somehow.

“You are a lovable person. I just wanted to tell you that.”

If life would have been a cartoon, a huge question mark would have appeared above her head.

“A while back, you said you don’t think of yourself as a lovable person. You’re wrong.”

Sherry adjusted her pillow as if settling in for a longer conversation. “You’re not very easy to get along with, and sometimes you drive everybody crazy with your antics. But you’re trying. With the Archer, with Jake…and with me.”

Sherry’s warm breath on her face felt like a gentle caress. Madison didn’t dare move.

When Sherry started to turn away, Madison held on to her arm. She had no idea what to say or do. Sherry’s words weren’t over-the-top flattery but genuine praise, so they touched her deeply. Sherry thought she was lovable? As much as she searched, she couldn’t come up with the words to express her feelings. So she did the only thing that would convey to Sherry just how much her words had meant to her. Slowly, giving Sherry the chance to draw back if she wanted to, Madison leaned closer and gave Sherry the softest of kisses on her lips. It wasn’t a passionate or even possessive kiss. She wanted the kiss to express what her words couldn’t, and while she felt Sherry’s soft lips on hers, she realized how much she had wanted to do this.

Sherry didn’t move away—nor did she deepen the kiss.

Uncertain as to whether she might have done the wrong thing, Madison drew back, ending their kiss.

Sherry still didn’t react, and her face was far too hidden in the darkness for Madison to read it.

A lump formed in her throat. She had gone too far. “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to make you uncomfortable.”

“You didn’t,” Sherry whispered. “Good night, Madison.”

Before Madison could think of an answer, Sherry turned over but didn’t put any distance between them.

That had to be a good sign. But what of?

What the hell had just happened between them?

An hour later, Sherry was still lying awake.

Madison had kissed her. Not because of their sham relationship and it hadn’t felt as if Madison was taking advantage of the situation.

No, Madison’s lips had trembled when she’d kissed her.

But what did that mean?

Their conversation had gotten totally out of hand. And the kiss… Sherry couldn’t recall ever having been kissed in such a tender way.

Had that been Madison’s way of thanking Sherry for her words, or had it been an expression of her feelings?

She shook her head. No way could Madison have true feelings for her. Just because she liked Jake and cared about his well-being didn’t mean that Madison was feeling more for her than for any other woman she’d shared her bed with. And there had been quite a few women before Sherry.

So why had she allowed the kiss or at least not pulled back immediately afterward? Because I want to be close to her. Considering the circumstances, it was ridiculous, but she felt safe with Madison—even though Madison would probably get rid of them as soon as she received her inheritance.

Madison had changed so much since they had first met. As Sherry had told her, she was trying. And she hadn’t overstepped her boundaries in a long while now. Until tonight.

But had she really overstepped? No. Madison had done nothing that Sherry hadn’t wanted her to. God, she was losing her mind.

They had shared a short peck and nothing else. And pondering about it, or about how Madison might or might not have changed, wasn’t doing her any good.

They were both getting along, and that would allow them to play their roles even better. That was all that mattered.

Nodding to herself, she closed her eyes and fell asleep soon after.

Chapter 27

Madison got up from her movie theater seat. “Does anybody want more popcorn?”

“Me!” about half a dozen kids shouted.

Smiling into the dark, Sherry stood too. “I’m gonna help you.” She leaned toward Rita Mae. “Anything for you?”

“Maybe some more of that tasty walnut ice cream.”

“Coming right up.” Sherry slipped her hand into Madison’s, and together they walked out of the auditorium. Fighting their way through the throng of people waiting for another movie to begin, they eventually reached the concessions counter where Sherry had to let go of Madison’s hand.

On their way back, Sherry said, “Jake’s having a blast. This has to be the best birthday of his life.” Because her hands were full of popcorn and Rita Mae’s ice cream, she leaned her head briefly onto Madison’s shoulder. “Thank you.”

Madison smiled at her. “I’m having fun too. Isn’t the baby cute?”

“I would have thought you were more a fan of Elastigirl.” Sherry winked.

Was Madison blushing? “Get your mind out of the gutter. Jake has two things he talks about: Tony and The Incredibles. So seeing Incredibles 2 with him was kind of inevitable, don’t you think?”

They stopped in front of the theater door. Both had their hands full, so how were they going to open the door?

“Mad? I mean, Madison?”

They turned to see a blonde woman in designer jeans and a shiny yellow blouse standing behind them.

“Janice?”

“The one and only.” The woman was beaming at Madison. “It’s Robert’s and my anniversary. That’s why we went out tonight on a romantic date. And I see you two had the same idea.” She winked.

Oh my God. Sherry felt as if she were about to faint. Did this woman know the truth about them? Janice… Where did she know that name from?

Madison didn’t seem to be worried at all; she was still smiling. “Congratulations on your anniversary.”

“Thanks.”

Madison leaned over to Sherry. “Janice is my lawyer. She drew up the contracts for you and Rita Mae.”

Nervousness gave way to an all-too-familiar tingling at Madison’s warm breath close to her ear. As usual, she ignored it and focused instead on her relief. “Nice to finally meet you.” Sherry raised their food and drinks to indicate she couldn’t shake hands.

Janice grinned. “You both seem to be pretty hungry, if I may say so.”

Madison chuckled. “Most of it’s for a bunch of kids sitting in here.” She nodded toward the auditorium door beside them.

Janice squinted above the door to read the title of the movie. “Madison, you’re watching an animated movie?”

Madison stared at the floor as if embarrassed. “It’s Jake’s birthday.”

“A…and you’ve joined the kids?”

A mix of hurt and anger flashed over Madison’s face. “Why not?”

Janice held up her hands in a gesture of defeat. “Just saying. Um, I’d better go, or Robert will be sending out a search party for me.” She smiled and walked away. Over her shoulder, she waved at them. “Have fun.”

“She seems nice,” Sherry said when Madison kept staring after her.

Madison shrugged, and a few pieces of popcorn fell to the ground.

She didn’t really know what was going on with Madison, but she knew how to lighten the mood, so she said, “It seems she had no idea that you’re into cute animated babies with superpowers.”

“Seems so.”

A wave of affection for Madison swept over Sherry, and she gave her a short peck on the cheek.

When Sherry stepped back, someone left the auditorium, and Madison and Sherry used the chance to slip in.

On the way back to their seats, and later when they were sitting quietly beside each other, Sherry ignored how Madison looked over to her repeatedly as if trying to find out what to make of Sherry’s kiss.

“Hey, Madison, can you connect a new barrel of beer?” Jack called from the dispensing head.

Madison had just finished preparing a hot chocolate and put it on the counter for Danielle to pick up. “Give me a minute.” She was about to go to the basement when someone tugged at her arm. She turned to a male customer in his mid-forties. “Yeah?”

He held up his half-empty beer. “My beer’s stale.”

It couldn’t have been that bad considering he’d already drained half. She was about to tell him that when she remembered her resolution to be nicer to the customers.

Danielle had praised her repeatedly and was already scheduling her for more shifts.

She took his glass of beer. “I’m about to head down to connect a new barrel. I’ll bring you a new glass when I’m done.”

“Does that take long? I’m on my lunch break and have to get back to work.”

He was having a beer on his lunch break? Madison bit her tongue to hold back some snippy remark. “Two or three minutes max. But I can give you a bottle of beer instead. What would you like?”

“Corona.”

Madison nodded and got him his choice.

After mumbling a “Thanks,” he strolled back to his table. Apparently, he was no longer in a hurry.

Madison turned away from the bar, rolled her eyes, and started toward the basement.

Passing the kitchen on her way, she ran into Sherry heading there. “Careful.” Sherry put her tray with two empty mugs on the bar counter before smiling at Madison as if she were the nicest thing she had seen all day. “You handled that customer well. You’ve gotten really good.”

Madison straightened. The praise felt damn good, but she shrugged not to show it.

“Madison, the barrel!”

“I’m on it, Jack!”

Sherry caressed her arm. “What would you say to bringing home some takeout tonight so that Rita Mae doesn’t have to cook? We could drive by Alfredo’s.”

Sherry’s touch was much too distracting, and it took her a moment until Sherry’s words registered in her foggy mind. “Sure. But then we would have to leave here early so that we can pick Jake up in time.”

“That shouldn’t be a problem today. I’ll let Rita Mae know.” Sherry’s hand was still lingering on her arm, but as much as Jack was waiting for her to get going, she couldn’t bring herself to end their contact.

When their gazes met, all urgency deserted Madison, and she gave in to the temptation to wrap her arms around Sherry.

After a slight hesitation, Sherry hugged her back.

When they let go after a pleasantly long embrace, Sherry asked, “What was that for?”

Madison smiled at her. “Just because.”

Now that the fog in her brain was lifting, she was kind of embarrassed about her childish behavior and hurried down the stairs to the basement.

“I’ll go!” Madison ran to the entrance to answer the knock on the door. She straightened her blouse one last time and then yanked the door open. “Hello, Grandmother. Please come—”

“Finally. What took you so long?” Without waiting for a reply, Grandmother Eileen marched past her.

“…in,” Madison finished under her breath, closing the door.

With a strained smile, Sherry hurried toward them and held out her hand. “Good evening, Mrs. Fielding. Happy Thanksgiving. Wonderful that you could join us.”

Her grandmother barely took Sherry’s hand before letting go again. “Good evening.” She inspected the hall as if seeing it for the first time. “Where’s the boy?”

Madison walked to Sherry and took her hand. “Jake is helping Rita Mae in the kitchen.”

Grandmother Eileen’s jaw dropped. “You’re raising the boy to help the staff?”

Madison let go of Sherry’s hand to take her grandmother’s coat. She sucked in a deep, but unfortunately not calming, breath. “He likes helping her. Besides—”

“I hope you have scotch. I’m not sure I can endure this sober.”

Wow. Even for her standards, Grandmother Eileen was bitchy today. But this is our home, and she doesn’t have the right to talk to us like that here. “You can’t stand this sober? Well, in that case we don’t have to worry, do we? The last time you were sober was probably in the Reagan era.”

“How dare you?”

Sherry caressed Madison’s arm. “I think Rita Mae needs another helping hand in the kitchen. Would you mind, Madison?”

Maybe Sherry was right; it was best she left before she said something she would regret later. She nodded and walked off, wondering how Sherry could stay so calm.

Sherry watched Madison leave for the kitchen. Then she turned to face Mrs. Fielding and gave her a smile. “Shall we head to the living room? I can serve you a glass of scotch there.”

Mrs. Fielding stalked silently past her.

In the living room, Sherry saw over the kitchen counter how Madison was bending down to Jake, making him laugh with something she said.

Mrs. Fielding shook her head in disapproval. “She will never grow up.”

“You’re wrong.” Sherry opened the cabinet with several bottles of alcohol beside the dinner table and got a glass and a full bottle of scotch out. Madison hasn’t touched any alcohol for a while. A smile stole itself onto her face when she walked to the kitchen counter and held the glass up, so that Madison, without any words necessary, could put some ice cubes into the glass while winking at her.

Sherry winked back and returned to Madison’s grandmother.

As soon as Mrs. Fielding took the glass from Sherry, she took a healthy swig and hummed approvingly. “You don’t know Madison as I do.”

“You’re right. We know two different Madisons. And mine has changed a lot. Especially over the past months. And for the better, I might add. If you would only take the time to look more closely, you would see that too.” Sherry gestured for Mrs. Fielding to take a seat on the couch.

With as much distance as possible, they both sat down.

“I don’t think so,” Mrs. Fielding said.

Laughter came from the kitchen, and Madison’s voice could be heard above the others.

“See that?” Mrs. Fielding wrinkled her nose. “Not that you would have any idea about those things, but do you honestly think that Madison could ever take responsibility for anybody?” She didn’t give Sherry the chance to answer because she kept on talking. “This bar she co-owns is managed by Danielle, and with you and the boy, she also doesn’t take any responsibility. It’s all just fun and games to her. I’m sorry that I have to be so blunt, but you are nothing more than a distraction to her, and she will lose interest in you soon.”

It was Sherry’s job to try painting Madison in a better light. But even if Madison weren’t paying her, she would have still felt the urge to defend her. Madison had changed, and even though Sherry didn’t know how far these changes really went, Madison wasn’t the person that Mrs. Fielding was describing anymore. “You’re wrong. Madison manages the Archer with Danielle. And she’s taking on more and more responsibility in all departments. She’s taking her job very seriously.”

Mrs. Fielding opened her mouth, but this time Sherry didn’t give her the chance to badmouth Madison. “She’s affectionate and caring with Jake and very important to him.” She said it to make her point, but it was all true. “She’s changed. Having a family has changed her. She hasn’t been out with her old friends for weeks or behaved irresponsibly in any way.”

“If you have to praise her for not doing something stupid, it shows where we stand.” Despite her words, Mrs. Fielding observed Madison thoughtfully.

I’m getting through to her. She shifted closer to Mrs. Fielding. “Do you think that someone can change?”

“You seem to think so.”

“I do. And if you give your granddaughter a chance, you’ll see what I mean.”

Mrs. Fielding drained the rest of her scotch.

“Something isn’t right,” Madison whispered into Sherry’s ear, when they sat down at the dinner table. Since her grandmother had entered the apartment, something had seemed off. Neither the word aggressive nor the word emotional seemed to fit.

“I know what you mean,” Sherry whispered back. “She seems almost…melancholic.”

Pleasant goose bumps formed on her arms as Sherry breathed into her ear. Get a grip! She had gotten so good at ignoring the effect Sherry had on her. At least that’s what she told herself many times a day. Then she became aware of Sherry’s words. Melancholic? That description would never have crossed her mind.

“Stop whispering like two teenagers,” Grandmother Eileen said. “What kind of role model are you for the boy?” She rolled her eyes. “It’s time to say grace.”

Jake looked from Sherry to Rita Mae, who took a seat beside him.

Grandmother Eileen stared at Rita Mae. “You’re eating with us at the table?”

“She’s part of the family,” Sherry said.

“Madison, you won’t allow your kitchen help to—”

“That’s exactly what I intend to do, Grandmother. We always eat together, and I don’t plan to change that today.”

Rita Mae stood. “Maybe it would be better if I—”

“No.” Madison stood as well. “Please sit down again. Grandmother, you’re our guest. We are…” She took a deep breath and tried to sound at least halfway honest when she continued. “…glad to have you with us tonight. But that doesn’t change the fact that Rita Mae is as welcome at this table as you are or me.”

Grandmother Eileen pressed her lips together and held out her hands to say grace.

Rita Mae was still standing, obviously unsure what to do.

“Please sit down,” Sherry said, and to Jake, “We’ll hold hands now to thank God for our dinner.”

Jake frowned. “But Rita Mae prepared dinner. Shouldn’t we thank her?”

Madison burst out laughing. She tried to hide it with a cough. “You’re right, but if not for God, we wouldn’t have had the money to pay for—”

“What has that to do with God? Mom and you work to—”

“Enough,” Grandmother Eileen snarled. “Good grace, this child doesn’t know about the most basic things.” She leaned over to him. “Before we eat, we have to say grace to thank God. That’s just how it is.”

Jake’s expression showed his confusion.

Madison would have bet a thousand bucks that he would ask more questions, but instead he just took Madison’s and Rita Mae’s hands and waited to see what would happen next.

With a polite nod, Madison signaled Grandmother Eileen that she could say grace before taking Sherry’s warm hand in hers.

“God our Father, Lord, and Savior, we thank you for this meal you brought to our table and that Madison has managed not to shame her family name in recent weeks.”

Sherry squeezed Madison’s hand as if trying to tell her that she should ignore this part.

Grandmother Eileen never said grace without a dig in her direction. That would never change and almost didn’t hurt anymore. Madison squeezed back to let Sherry know she had nothing to worry about.

“And may Sally rest in peace.”

Madison’s head snapped up.

“Amen.”

All but Madison repeated the word.

Rita Mae stood and held the knife out for Madison to cut the turkey.

Madison took the knife but stared at her grandmother. “Did something happen to Aunt Sally?”

Grandmother Eileen took her napkin from the table and spread it across her lap. As if talking about the weather, she said, “She passed away last Saturday.”

Madison had placed the knife on the roasted meat to start carving it. Now she slipped and just cut of a small slice of crust. “W-what?”

“It was her heart. It simply…stopped.”

Speechless, Madison slumped back onto her chair.

She and Aunt Sally hadn’t seen each other often. Grandmother Eileen didn’t like to be reminded that she had come from a family of miners. And in contrast to her, Aunt Sally hadn’t married into money but had married the owner of an old-fashioned general store where she’d worked side by side with her husband until their retirement.

Sherry caressed Madison’s back.

Grandmother Eileen took a bowl of mashed potatoes. “Don’t pretend to be shocked. We knew she was sick.” Despite her matter-of-fact attitude, her voice was shaking.

“Why didn’t you tell me?” After her father’s funeral, it had been Aunt Sally who had held her, not Grandmother Eileen. Maybe she would have taken Madison in, but her husband had had health issues back then, so she had been forced to stay with her grandmother.

At least that’s what Aunt Sally had told her. But the truth was that if she really had been worried about Madison, she wouldn’t have just left her with the witch or at least would have called more often than once a year on Madison’s birthday.

“You know now.” Grandmother Eileen heaped some vegetables onto her plate before pointing to the meat. “Are you planning to carve the turkey, or shall your kitchen help do it?”

God, Grandmother Eileen was the living example of who she didn’t want to be. But in the emotional chaos one unwanted thought crept through: Maybe I am already like her.

“Thanks for coming,” Madison said.

Grandmother Eileen half-turned to Sherry. “Would you excuse us?”

What now? Did she finally want to talk about Aunt Sally?

“Of course.” Sherry gave Madison a peck on the cheek. “I’ll be in the living room.”

As soon as they were alone, Grandmother Eileen said, “On Monday, there’ll be a board meeting at Fielding Inc. and I have decided that you will accompany me.”

Madison’s jaw dropped. “Y-you want me to accompany you to the board meeting?”

“That’s what I said, didn’t I?” Her gaze drilled into her. “I’m giving you this one chance. Don’t ruin it as you have ruined everything else in your life.”

Ignoring the jibe, Madison nodded. “Thank you. You can count on me.”

“We’ll see.”

When her grandmother had left, Madison went back to the living room in a daze.

In the past, she would have called Phil to tell him the news, but even though she missed him, he wouldn’t have cared much about this. But he was gone from her life now, and a part of her couldn’t be sorry about it.

“Everything okay?” Sherry asked with a worried expression on her face.

It was like in a dream. Her whole plan seemed to be working. Cheering, she ran toward Sherry and whirled her around.

After a few seconds, Sherry started laughing. “Madison, what are you doing? Let go of me!” But she didn’t sound as if that was really what she wanted.

Madison set Sherry down gently and looked into her confused yet amused face. Sherry cared about Madison and what happened to her.

A smile curled Sherry’s irresistible lips, and before Madison could think about it or hold herself back, she leaned down and—

“Me too!” Jake tugged on Madison’s pants.

Sherry blinked and stepped back from her.

Jake tugged again until she broke eye contact with Sherry. “I want a spin too.”

Madison picked him up and whirled him around a couple of times.

He laughed, and Madison had to grin. This innocent encounter had cleared her head. Once she’d set him down, she said, “My grandmother wants me to join her on Monday at the firm. She wants to take me to one of the board meetings.”

“That’s fantastic.” Sherry didn’t look at her. “I’m sure we’ll find someone who can take over for you.”

“Oh.” How could she have forgotten the Archer?

“Don’t worry.” Sherry sat on the couch. “We’ll be fine.”

Rita Mae took a seat beside her. “Sherry’s right. Good luck. That’s great news.”

“Thanks.” Now all she could think about was how much she would miss working with Sherry on Monday.

“What’s a board meeting?” Jake asked.

Sherry looked up and smiled at Madison.

God, how beautiful she was and how damn good it had felt to hold her moments ago, to feel her sexy body so close, and… Stop it! Madison cleared her throat and pointed toward Sherry and Rita Mae. “They’ll tell you. I, um, have to pee.” As fast as her legs allowed, she hurried to her bathroom. She needed a shower.

A cold one.

Chapter 28

Madison followed Grandmother Eileen through the halls of Fielding Inc.’s headquarters.

In her black pencil skirt and conservative high heels, she felt like a dressed-up doll. Maybe the high-necked white blouse, black blazer, string of pearls, and chignon, which Grandmother Eileen had insisted on, were mostly to blame for this.

“Sit down at the end of the table and take notes.”

“Yes, Grandmother.”

Glancing over her shoulder, Grandmother Eileen said, “And for heaven’s sake, stop fidgeting.”

“Yes, ma’am.” Holding her briefcase close to her side, Madison raised her chin. She was a Fielding. And just because it was her first time at the firm didn’t mean that this wouldn’t be all hers one day.

At least if I play my cards right.

They reached mahogany double doors, and Grandmother Eileen opened them without knocking.

Twelve men were sitting around an oval table, all conversation instantly ceasing the instant she entered the room and stared at them.

Madison gulped.

A man with barely any hair on his shining head and a belly in front of him as if he was nine months pregnant jumped up. “Mrs. Fielding. Good to see you. We, um, were just about to—”

Grandmother Eileen held up her hand. “I’m not blind. I can see that you were about to start without me.” She took a seat at the head of the table and signaled Madison with a twirl of her wrist to sit at the other end.

But there was no chair.

“Burton, get my granddaughter a chair. Why haven’t you taken care of it already? You agreed to her participation on Friday, have you forgotten already?”

Everybody stared at Madison.

I won’t blush, I won’t blush, I won’t—

“Of course not, Mrs. Fielding.” The pregnant-looking man pushed his chair to the end of the table for Madison to sit before rushing off at a speed that belied his proportions. “Cecil has forgotten, it seems. I’ll get it immediately.”

Madison sat down the same moment her grandmother did and followed her example of getting a notebook and a pen out of her briefcase.

“Let’s begin with agenda item one,” Grandmother Eileen said.

Madison really tried, but after an hour of boring data analysis and discussion, her thoughts began to drift. Really amazing that every man in the room seemed to have the same tailor. Their suits looked cloned.

When a haggard tall man stood, talking about some negotiations he had led, Madison’s boredom was replaced by amusement. His Adam’s apple bobbed up and down with every word.

She had to bite her tongue not to start laughing about it. Instead she allowed her mind to wander to Sherry. She had to be at the Archer right now. It was really a sight how Sherry’s hips swayed just slightly while she walked from table to table. And most of the time, her lips sported an enchanting smile while doing so. At the last second, Madison suppressed a sigh.

When one of the executive committee members glanced at her, she focused on her notebook and wrote down the first thing said.

“This results in a five-percent growth overall in our transatlantic trading volume,” the guy in his mid-forties concluded before sitting down to the applause of his colleagues.

Holding back a yawn, Madison clapped too.

“Thank you, Richard,” Grandmother Eileen said. “I propose we move on to our next agenda item, which is—”

Whatever her grandmother said next was lost on her. Would Sherry be able to finish up in time today? If so, they might be able to watch a movie together tonight. When Sherry was tired, she sometimes leaned her head on Madison’s shoulder, and one time she had even fallen asleep after Madison had wrapped an arm around her.

Even though Madison still had a hard time grasping why she’d started to enjoy physical contact recently—at least with Sherry and Jake—she was beginning to understand why some people liked to cuddle.

Watching Jake and Sherry caused such a profound feeling in her, but she just couldn’t name it. Sadness? Jealousy? Or…longing? As if! I have to stop thinking like that. I never liked to cuddle, so why should that change suddenly?

“Thank you, gentlemen.” Grandmother Eileen stood and went to the door, clearly expecting Madison to follow.

Madison shoved her notebook and pen into her briefcase and scurried after her.

“To my office.” Grandmother Eileen sashayed ahead.

Dammit! She’s realized that I wasn’t listening most of the time. “Yes, Grandmother.”

Walking through a waiting room, where Grandmother Eileen’s assistant Tiffany was sitting behind a desk, they entered the huge corner office.

Tiffany ended the call she had been on and followed them swiftly. “Good morning, Mrs. Fielding.” Turning back to Madison, she winked.

Madison winked back. The one-night stand with her three or four years ago had been great. Tiffany had been approaching forty back then and had kept Madison up all night. It was probably true that women reached their sexual peak around forty.

Tiffany’s gaze lingered a moment longer on her, then she focused back on Grandmother Eileen. “Is there anything I can bring you, ma’am?”

“Scotch on the rocks.”

The assistant nodded as if it were the most normal thing in the world to have a drink at eleven in the morning. She looked at Madison next.

“Nothing for me, thanks.”

Tiffany smiled, but it seemed insecure when she left the office. Was she surprised that Madison had thanked her? She hadn’t been that impolite with people assisting or serving her in the past, had she?

When the door to the outer office had been closed, Grandmother Eileen sat down in her gigantic executive chair and pointed to the seat on the other side of the huge desk. “Sit.”

Madison did.

Grandmother Eileen leaned back in her chair and scrutinized Madison with a piercing stare.

God, how much she hated it when her grandmother did that. But experience had taught her to just wait until Grandmother Eileen felt she’d played this power game long enough and was finally ready to talk.

There was a knock at the door when Tiffany returned with a glass filled with ice cubes and scotch almost to the rim.

Grandmother Eileen accepted it without thanking her and took a long sip.

When they were alone, she asked, “What did you think about Trevor Simmens’s proposal?”

What proposal and who was this guy? It doesn’t matter. They were all talking about the same crap. Trying her luck, she asked, “You mean the expansion plans?”

Surprise flashed across Grandmother Eileen’s features. “So you were listening after all.” She took another sip of her scotch and hummed approvingly. “Yeah, I meant the opening of the manufacturing plant in China.”

Self-confident. I have to appear self-confident. “Sounds good to me.”

With a thoughtful expression on her face, Grandmother Eileen nodded and downed her scotch. “I’ve decided that you can start working for the firm.”

Madison’s jaw dropped.

“You have one week to get a handle of things. You’ll start Monday next week, as one of four vice presidents working in Operations. Your supervisor will be John Billings. I’ve arranged that he’ll send you a folder with all the necessary information you’ll need regarding your position.” Her grandmother held the glass to her mouth before compressing her lips when she seemed to realize it was empty already. With a thud, the glass landed on the desk. “I’ll give you one month to prove yourself. Until then, I expect you to be familiar with all procedures and to have some positive results to present.”

“Yes, Grandmother.” The folded hands in her lap trembled. No way in hell was she qualified for this job. But even though she knew nothing about her future position, she had no doubt that it came with a lot of overtime. Her shoulders dropped. I want the damn inheritance, so I have to work for it. But the saying was obviously true: you should be careful what you wished for.

Groaning, Sherry rubbed her tense neck while entering the bedroom.

Madison was reading one of many pages stapled together. A stack of even more paperwork about three inches high lay on Madison’s nightstand.

Sherry closed the door and went to the bed. Slipping under the sheets, she asked, “Are these the information the courier brought earlier? Rita Mae mentioned there had been someone at the door.”

Madison looked up. “Yeah.” She rubbed across her face with one hand before putting down her paperwork on the nightstand. “If I have to read just one more paragraph about allocation of tasks within my department, I will—”

“Isn’t that exactly what you wanted?”

“I want the damn inheritance, not a job in management.”

“But if you inherit the company, it will be up to you to lead it, won’t it?”

“Nah. That’s what you pay people for.”

“Your grandmother leads the company so—”

Madison, who had been sitting up against the headboard, slid down and turned toward Sherry. “A driver collects her every morning to take her to her fancy corner office so that she can drink her scotch there instead of her empty mansion, but that’s it. Officially, she’s the chairwoman of Fielding Inc., but… Oh, I don’t know. She was directing today’s meeting but didn’t contribute anything that was even slightly constructive. I’m not sure she even understood everything they were saying. After all, she hasn’t studied business or anything else. And she’s never been anything but the boss, so…”

“And what about you?”

“Huh? I’ve at least got a BA in business studies.”

“I know, but did you understand everything that was said?”

Madison scratched her neck. “Probably more than she did.”

Facing Madison, Sherry propped her chin on her hand. “Do you want to know what I think?”

A grin spread across Madison’s face. “I’ve got a feeling I should say no.”

Sherry grinned back. “You’re really something.”

“Am I?”

The way Madison asked caused heat to spread across Sherry’s body. Is she flirting? She should ignore it and focus on their conversation. “I have the feeling nobody can do right with you. You want your grandmother to believe that you can take responsibility. It’s working. And now you’re only one step away from reaching your goal. And what do you do? You complain about all the work this is causing.”

“Mm-hmm.” She expected Madison to snap at her or turn away, ending their conversation, but instead she asked, “How was your day?”

Wow! After criticizing Madison like that, she hadn’t expected such a considerate question. “Emily, the new hire, couldn’t step in for you because she’s got a bad cold. So Danielle, Jack, and I had to manage without a fourth person.”

Madison lowered her gaze as if feeling guilty.

Sherry touched her arm. “It’s okay. You had more important things to do. Danielle said so too. It’s just…”

“It’s just what?”

She hadn’t wanted to bring it up, but it seemed to be the right thing to do. “Danielle was pretty crestfallen when you called to say that you wouldn’t be coming back.”

“I’d prefer to work at the Archer any day, believe me.”

Sherry was about to ask why she then didn’t do exactly that, but it would’ve been a dumb question. If Madison wanted to get her inheritance, she would have to play by her grandmother’s rules.

When her neck cramped for the maybe the hundredth time that day, Sherry lay back and rubbed the painful spot.

“You okay?”

“Yeah. I’m just a little tense. Maybe a pinched nerve. That’s all. Let’s sleep.”

Madison reached out for the light switch but paused. “Do, um, do you want me to give you a massage?”

Sherry’s head jerked toward Madison. The sudden movement caused a searing pain in her neck, and she had to close her eyes to focus on relaxing her aching muscles.

“Do you want to do it sitting or lying down?”

“W-what?”

“I used to be very good with massages. At least the women I gave them to said so.” When Sherry didn’t move, she said, “Roll over. I’ll start at your lower back and work my way up.” She grinned mischievously. “Most people work their way down, but I prefer to massage my way u—”

“They weren’t just any women. You slept with them, didn’t you?” Was this an attempt to seduce her? Sherry’s breath caught when she realized that she wasn’t so sure she would have minded being seduced by her.

Madison shrugged. “So what? I’m offering you a massage, nothing else.” Hurt flashed across her face. “Or do you think I’m trying to take advantage of you?”

“Of course not.” Okay, maybe that wasn’t entirely true. But if she declined Madison’s offer, it wouldn’t matter what she said: the message would be clear.

Sherry turned onto her stomach. “You should push the covers to the side.”

“Sure,” Madison said. “And, uh, you should take off your shirt, so that I…” she cleared her throat, “can reach your back better.” Madison stood. “I’ll get the massage oil from the bathroom.”

Sherry stared after her. Was Madison serious? She wanted her to lie there half-naked? Her heart was beating so fast, as if it was going to burst out of her chest at any moment.

Get rid of your shirt and fast or she’ll see much more than your back. She shed her shirt as quickly as possible and laid back down just as Madison entered the bedroom again.

She held a little bottle with yellow oil in it. “You like the smell of vanilla, don’t you?”

Sherry wanted to nod, but then a piercing pain raced through her neck.

Out of the corner of her eye, she saw that Madison was staring at the sheet instead of her naked back.

After pushing off the sheet, Madison put the bottle of oil on Sherry’s nightstand and started rubbing her own hands.

“What are you doing?”

Madison still wasn’t looking at her. “Cold hands.”

It was touching how much Madison was trying to respect her privacy. Sherry would have liked to give her a hug for that. Better not now. A giggle erupted in Sherry’s throat at the thought.

Madison halted her hand-rubbing. “What’s so funny?”

“Um, you’re really nice.”

Was Madison blushing? “Nah. You would do the same for me if my neck was tense.” Madison took a deep breath as if she needed to prepare herself mentally for the task and then sat down on the edge of the bed. Slowly, she took the bottle of oil from the nightstand and let some oil drip on Sherry’s back.

She sucked in a breath.

“Sorry,” Madison mumbled, placing the bottle back on the nightstand. Gently, she started rubbing the oil onto her back.

Sherry didn’t dare to breathe for fear she would moan. God, that feels heavenly. Madison’s hands slid skillfully over the sensitive skin of her lower back before applying pressure to the knotted places. “Wow, you’re tense all over your back.” With her thumbs, she slid up the outer edges of her spine until she circled the area between her shoulder blades.

Sherry couldn’t hold it back any longer. “Ah! Yeah, right there!” Her eyes snapped open. When had they fallen shut?

Madison paused before getting on with it a few seconds later.

Sherry’s pulse was racing and not just because Madison was working on her body with her very talented hands, touching places that Sherry hadn’t even known existed. A totally inappropriate pulsing had begun between her legs and was increasing by the minute, but damn, this was pleasant. Her body reacted in a way she hadn’t experienced in a long time, if ever. It was a secret pleasure she would never admit to anybody.

Her eyes fell shut again when Madison’s hands reached the place where her shoulders met her neck.

“Jesus, no wonder you’re in so much pain. It feels as if you’ve been working in a quarry.”

A smile stole onto Sherry’s lips. “Almost. It was your coffee bar, boss.”

Madison’s massage stopped. She bent down, and Sherry could feel her hot breath on her neck when she said, “I guess if you work so hard for me, you deserve to get a raise.”

Even though Madison sat back up immediately, the pulsing between Sherry’s legs got more insistent and goose bumps spread all over her body.

“Are you cold?”

Relief flooded her. She thinks it’s from the temperature in the room. Surprising given how hot the bedroom was right now and that Madison, who was so experienced with women, hadn’t thought of the most obvious cause for Sherry’s physical reaction. But who was she to tell her otherwise? “Just a little bit. Go ahead.” Forever, if I have any say in this.

Madison continued with her skilled hands, and with each passing moment, her touches seemed to become softer.

Sherry clenched her teeth when her nipples hardened. God!

God! Why had she come up with the totally stupid idea of offering Sherry a massage?

Because I wanted to touch her and do something nice for her. And it shouldn’t have been a big deal, but her body wasn’t getting the message. Nearly all the blood seemed to have gone to her lower body regions; she could barely form a clear thought. It didn’t help that Sherry had gained a few pounds within the last weeks, making her look healthier and even more attractive.

With both hands, she moved along Sherry’s back. Her skin felt like silk. When she caught herself caressing more than massaging, she pressed down firmly and concentrated on the countless tense spots.

“Ah, yeah, just like that.”

Madison swallowed, but it didn’t help against her dry mouth. Does she have to make such noises and say those words? She should wrap up this massage quickly and wish Sherry a good night. If she’d been alone, she would have taken matters into her own hands, touching herself, but with Sherry at her side, this wasn’t an option. She sighed.

“It’s exhausting you, isn’t it?” Sherry asked, her voice sounding strangely hoarse.

You’ve got no idea. “It’s fine. Could you straighten your neck by leaning with your head into your pillow for a second?”

Trusting Madison’s instruction, Sherry did as she was told.

Carefully, Madison pushed Sherry’s soft hair to the side and rubbed with her thumb and forefinger beside Sherry’s spine and neck. Everything was going smoothly until she became aware of her upper body touching Sherry’s naked back. Better not think about it. She wouldn’t hurt Sherry’s trust by placing a kiss there, as tempting as it was.

Sherry raised her head to breathe, and Madison’s lips almost touched her skin accidentally. Before Madison could lose the battle with herself, Sherry luckily lowered her head again.

In that moment, Madison would have done literally anything for Sherry to turn around and—

“Madison?”

“Yeah?” Was this her voice?

“Are you done?”

“Oh, I’m sorry.” Madison pressed down on some knotted places and moved her fingers up and down before croaking out, “Done.”

After a while, Sherry said quietly, “Thank you,” but she didn’t move.

Oh, she’s waiting for me to leave. Of course she couldn’t sit up without exposing her breasts to Madison. Heat surged through her body at the thought of Sherry’s probably soft breasts.

“Um, I’ll go wash my hands.” She jumped up and stumbled to the bathroom.

As soon as Madison had closed the door behind her, Sherry sat up and slipped on her top. It was outright ridiculous how much Madison’s massage had aroused her. How was it possible that the most erotic touches of her life had come from someone paying her to play her girlfriend? And a woman at that. But it had been just a physical reaction, right?

No noise came from the bathroom. Why was Madison taking so long to come back?

As if reading Sherry’s last thought, Madison opened the door and walked around the bed to her side while avoiding Sherry’s gaze.

Was she blushing? And was there water dripping from her chin?

Madison slipped under the sheets and leaned toward the light switch. “Good night.”

“Good night, Madison and thanks.”

“No problem.” Madison switched off the light and lay down.

There seemed to be a sudden distance between them, and it didn’t feel good at all. “Madison?”

“Mm-hmm?”

“Why…? I mean I’m really thankful for it, but…”

Madison rolled around to face her, but her face was hidden in the darkness.

Sherry didn’t know where to start?

“What do you want to know?” Surprisingly, Madison didn’t sound annoyed but…worried?

“Ah, nothing.”

“Did I make you uncomfortable?”

“What? No.” Quite the opposite! “No. I trust you. You wouldn’t do anything on purpose to make me uncomfortable.” Not anymore, her mind supplied. She trusted Madison.

“What is it, then?”

Sherry gathered all her courage and asked, “Why did you give me the massage?”

Madison took a while to say, “I thought you could use one. That’s all. And I told you already that I’m sure you’d do the same for me.” She sighed, frustration in her voice. “I made you uncomfortable, didn’t I?”

“No, I was just wondering.” Under the sheets, she took Madison’s hand. “Thank you, really. I guess I’ll have to get used to it.”

Madison’s warm hand held hers gently. “Get used to what?”

“That with us. Not that we’re… What I mean is—”

“I know what you mean. We’re getting along much better now.”

“Yeah, much better.” Sherry was aware that neither of them let go of the other one’s hand. It feels so damn good to hold her hand. She moved a little bit closer, so that her hand could rest in Madison’s more comfortably. It relaxed her. Smiling, she closed her eyes. “Good night, Madison.”

Madison didn’t move an inch. “Good night.”

In less than a minute, she drifted off to sleep.

Chapter 29

Sherry had never understood the expression that someone furrowed their brow. Until now.

Madison was sitting on the other end of the couch Indian-style studying the paperwork from Fielding Inc. From time to time she wrote something down in her notebook, then underlined another thing while grumbling unintelligibly.

Sherry gave up her attempt to read her book and switched on the TV to pass the time. Pass the time. To have free time was still a new experience for her. When she’d been in high school, she had dreamed of going to college and spending all her time learning. But even though she had been a good student, this had always been nothing but a dream, drowned out by endless work and barely getting by. Now there was nothing to hold her back anymore, and she was considering taking some classes at the nearby community college.

The thought brought a smile to her face, but it dimmed when Madison moaned. “Sorry.” Sherry took the remote control. “I should have asked you. I’ll turn it off again.”

“Huh? Oh, no, no.” Madison put her paperwork and her notebook onto the coffee table. “God, it’s impossible to learn all of this in such a short time.”

“But didn’t you study this?”

“It feels like that was a hundred years ago. And no, I can barely use anything I learned in my business studies.” She gestured toward the stack of paperwork on the coffee table. “This is something entirely different. It’s about company policies, department procedures, and—”

“We’re back!” Rita Mae called from the hall a second before Jake came running into the room at a breakneck speed and then jumped between Sherry and Madison on the couch.

Worried, Sherry peeked at Madison. She was under a lot of stress. Hopefully, she wouldn’t snap at Jake for disturbing her.

“There was a dog sitter at the park. He gets money for playing with dogs. When I’m grown-up, I want to be a dog sitter, too.”

“Baby, Madison is working and—”

But Madison caressed his hair in a tender gesture, and he leaned in to her. “It’s okay.” Madison opened her arms, and Jake snuggled into her. “Maybe being a dog sitter isn’t as exciting as you might think.”

“Why not?”

“Well, imagine you have to pick up the dog’s poop all day.”

“Ugh.”

“Now, I might know something you’d rather like to do.” She leaned forward to whisper something in his ear.

His eyes widened, and he started grinning from ear to ear. Giggling, he moved to Sherry and snuggled close to her. “Moooom?”

What were those two plotting? “Yeah?”

“Can I drive on a fire truck?”

“What?”

“I saw something on TV,” Madison said. “The local fire department is offering tours for children, and in that report, I saw some kids in the background on a fire truck.” Madison sounded as if she was the kid asking her mother for permission.

“I see.” She felt somehow blindsided, but she couldn’t be angry with Madison. She was too damn cute for that. “We’ll see. Maybe.”

Jake jumped up and cheered.

“Hey, that’s not a yes.”

Jake ignored her words and gave her a tight hug before repeating this with Madison.

Running to the hall he shouted, “Rita Mae! Rita Mae! I’m going to be a firefighter!”

“But I thought you wanted to be a dog sitter.” Rita Mae entered the living room, sending her and Madison a questioning glance.

Smiling, Sherry said, “We’ll visit the local fire department sometime soon so that he can go on one of their kid’s tours.”

Madison beamed.

When Rita Mae had gone to the kitchen to prepare dinner, Sherry moved closer to Madison until their thighs touched. “That was pretty sneaky of you.”

Madison rubbed her neck. “Are you mad?”

“No.” She was much too happy at how Madison was treating Jake, despite being so busy prepping for her new job. On impulse, she linked her arm with Madison’s and rested her head on her shoulder.

Together, they leaned back.

Sherry sighed. It felt wonderful to be close to Madison like this. Too good.

Madison laughed at something on TV.

Sherry studied Madison’s profile before gazing to the TV as well. She also had to smile when the character of a comedy show got totally drenched in water, looking grim.

Madison placed her arm around Sherry’s shoulders and pulled her closer.

If she didn’t allow herself to think about what all this meant, this moment was perfect.

Her stomach felt like a ball of knots while she was waiting beside Tiffany’s desk to be led into her grandmother’s office.

Tiffany fidgeted with her pen. “Would you like to meet tonight for a—”

“I’m in a relationship now.” Madison stopped her attempt to hook up with her for the third time this week alone. “I’ve told you.” She wasn’t interested in Tiffany or any other woman. Any woman but Sherry. Her breath caught when she realized it to be the truth.

Tiffany leaned forward, offering a glimpse of her ample cleavage. “And I told you already that’s a reason to meet, not a hindrance.”

“You can let her in,” Grandmother Eileen said through the speakerphone, saving Madison from telling Tiffany off yet again.

Unnecessarily, Tiffany pointed to the office door. “She’s expecting you.”

Walking into her grandmother’s office felt as if she were on her way to her execution. She had been at the firm for only a couple of weeks, and so far, the decisions she’d been making seemed to be correct. So why did her grandmother want to see her?

“Sit,” Grandmother Eileen said when Madison had closed the door.

As soon as Madison sat, the witch opened some folders on the table and took her time reading and signing them.

Why was she playing her damn power game?

Finally, all the paperwork was signed, and her grandmother pushed the stack of folders to the side. She steepled her fingers on the desk. “You’ve settled in nicely?”

“Yes, Grandmother.”

“Good. John told me you’re handling yourself well. Is he a good supervisor?”

He was an arrogant prick, but at least he had given her much more information than he had been obliged to, according to Madison’s assistant. Because of this substantial information, she had been able to get a handle of things much faster than she would have otherwise. “He’s an excellent supervisor, ma’am.”

“Good, good.” She leaned back. “I have to admit that you have surprised me. My judgment of you might have been a little rash. Maybe you’ll be able to take over the firm one day after all.”

As much as she’d waited for these words, something felt off in the way Grandmother Eileen said it.

“But…” Her grandmother sighed. “I’ll come straight to the point: you need a new girlfriend.”

Madison blinked.

“It’s bad enough that you have these”—she twirled her hand—“preferences. But a woman of your standing shouldn’t consort with a waitress. What kind of image does that project?”

“Y-you want me to break up with Sherry?” The room seemed to start spinning, and she had to hold on to the armrests of her chair.

“Exactly. If you insist on having a relationship with a woman, you should at least consider—”

Madison jumped up. “She is not negotiable.”

Grandmother Eileen’s features hardened.

What am I doing? If she asks me to jump though a burning hoop, I’ll do it. But the thought of waking up tomorrow without Sherry beside her sucked the air out of her lungs.

Her grandmother stood as well. “Not negotiable? You’d risk it all for some random girl, who—”

“She isn’t random to me.” It might have started out like that, but everything had changed. Oh, how much it had changed for her.

“You’re blinded by her. This girl is just out for your money. She—”

Madison held up her hand. “Enough!” She had to take a couple of deep breaths before she could say in a halfway calm voice, “I have work to do. If you’ll excuse me.” Not waiting for an answer, she marched out of the inner office and past Tiffany.

Minutes later, she was back behind the desk in her own office. She was still gasping for breath as if she’d run a marathon.

What was her damn problem? The job she had hired Sherry for was accomplished.

“What the hell am I waiting for?” Madison reached for her desk phone. She had to call Sherry to end their agreement.

Sherry would probably be relieved, even happy that she was free again. And with her job at the Archer, she would be fine. That’s what she’d said, right? Maybe Danielle would give Sherry a big raise and more hours so that she wouldn’t have to look for a second job. And if Madison agreed to keep paying for Jake’s schooling, he wouldn’t have to switch to another one. Sherry wouldn’t mind, would she?

The receiver in her hand felt as if it weighed a ton. “I have to…do it. C’mon.”

With a loud thump, she let the receiver fall back into its cradle. “No.” Grandmother Eileen thought that Madison had changed. And most of the credit for this had to go to Sherry. Without her, the whole illusion would collapse like a house of cards. No, it was better to wait a little longer. So long as her grandmother didn’t issue an ultimatum, Madison could forget their earlier conversation.

As soon as she’d made this decision, a weight lifted off her shoulders and she could breathe normally again.

Chapter 30

Sherry’s heels clicked on the polished wooden floor as soon as she stepped out of the elevator.

After the enormous lobby, she hadn’t expected that anything could impress her anymore. But the expensive wood paneling and the even more expensive-looking paintings on both walls of the hallway leading up to the huge reception desk left her in awe anyway.

She wiped her clammy palms on her pant legs and stepped up to the reception desk.

“How may I help you?” the woman behind the reception desk asked in a professional but not really friendly tone.

“I, um, was sent up from…” The man at the reception desk in the lobby hadn’t told her his name, and Sherry hadn’t read his nametag. “Downstairs.”

The woman squinted at her. “May I ask what exactly you are here fo—”

Another woman—a younger one—stumbled out of an office a few feet away from them. She tried without much success to straighten some lose strands of blonde hair back into her chignon before smoothing both palms over her wrinkled silk blouse. “It’s okay, Charlotte. This is Ms. Miller, Ms. Fielding’s partner. I was about to escort her upstairs, but I got…” She was breathing as if she’d run or maybe had had a close encounter of the intimate kind and blew a strand of hair away from her face. “…delayed. That’s why I asked Leonard to just send her up.” She rushed to Sherry. “I have to apologize for this, Ms. Miller.”

The woman behind the reception desk jumped up. “Oh, God, I’m so sorry. I should have known they wouldn’t send you up if you weren’t—”

“It’s fine.” Sherry smiled at her. “I don’t want to cause you any trouble. If you tell me where I can find Madison, I’ll be on my way.”

The woman, who had come out of the office, stopped in front of her. “I’m Olivia Tate, Ms. Fielding’s assistant. Please follow me.”

Her stomach cramped as if a huge stone were lying in it. Why was Madison’s assistant looking like that, and why was she so breathless? Working in an office shouldn’t make you look that flustered. Had Madison been fooling around with her? This thought transformed the stone in her stomach into a ball of fire. Madison seemed to be incapable of keeping her hands to herself. How could Sherry have thought for even a second that Madison had changed?

They stepped into the office, but Madison was nowhere in sight.

Ms. Tate walked to an adjacent double door and knocked. At a muffled “Come in,” the assistant opened the doors.

Sherry walked past Ms. Tate toward Madison, whose hair was slightly tousled. Her wrinkled blouse gave the impression she had just finished a romp in the hay with her assistant.

Madison smiled at Sherry with a warm expression. How dare she looking as if nothing was wrong? Did she think Sherry was blind?

“Can I bring you something to drink?” the assistant asked.

Without breaking eye contact with Madison, Sherry shook her head.

“Should you change your mind, please let me know.”

Sherry ignored her and her disheveled appearance.

“Hi, Sherry,” Madison said as soon as they were alone. “I’m sorry I couldn’t pick you up in the lobby, but I—”

Sherry crossed her arms in front of her chest. “I have a pretty good idea why you couldn’t.”

The smile turned into a frown. “And why exactly do you think that is?”

“If you can’t keep your hands away from your assistant, you should at least try to be more discreet or your grandmother will hear about it.” Her words were more growled than spoken. She couldn’t remember ever being so angry.

“What—?” Madison stared to the door, then back to her. A wide grin formed on her lips. “You think me and Olivia are—?” She cracked up.

Her hands balled into fists while she stomped to Madison’s desk.

Madison sobered. “Sherry, there’s nothing going on between me and Olivia. She’s happily married. To a man. Besides—”

With a bang, both of her palms smashed onto Madison’s desk. She could barely form a coherent thought. Why was Madison lying? She had never lied to her before. At least not that she knew of. So why now? “You must think I’m stupid. You both look like you…like you—”

“It’s not what you think.” She pointed below her desk. “I had problems with the connecting cables of my computer. If we’d called the technician, it would have taken forever, and I have a meeting in an hour and need to prepare for it. So Olivia and I checked the connections ourselves. This way I also hoped to be done before you arrived, and then you were downstairs and…” Her shoulders slumped.

All her anger evaporated at seeing Madison so flustered. No way would Madison react like this if there had been something going on between her and her assistant. A smile curved Sherry’s lips. Who would have thought that a rambling Madison could be so cute? “It’s okay.”

Madison circled the desk to stand in front of her. “I would never cheat on you.” She cleared her throat. “Um, I mean—”

“I know what you mean.” A strange feeling swept over her. Relief? Maybe. But there was also something else she refused to take a closer look at.

“You promised to show me around, and here I am. And if I understood you correctly, you have less than an hour before you have to be at a meeting.”

Madison’s whole body relaxed. “Yeah. Of course.” She was still standing in front of Sherry, but as much as she wanted to show her around, the urge to hug her prevailed. Hesitantly, she opened her arms.

Sherry didn’t move but tilted her head.

Dumb, dumb, dumb. You’re behaving like a little kid.

Just when Madison let her arms sink again, Sherry stepped forward and wrapped her arms around Madison’s waist.

Madison held Sherry as if she or at least their connection could break at any moment. But what she really wanted to do was to hold her as tightly as she could and never let go.

They had barely seen each other over the past few weeks. Either Madison was working all day or Sherry had to work longer in the days leading up to Christmas.

“That feels good.” Sherry voiced what Madison never would have dared to. With a sigh, she snuggled her face between Madison’s shoulder and neck.

“Yeah,” Madison whispered. Her heart was racing. It was the first time they admitted enjoying each other’s closeness. Sherry had obviously missed her too.

They held each other for a while; neither seeming in a hurry to let go.

When Sherry finally took a step back, she was gazing at Madison with a serious expression on her beautiful face.

It was as if their eyes had a silent conversation, but as much as Madison tried, she couldn’t understand what was said.

Does she want to kiss me?

Rather than moving closer, Sherry turned to face the office’s floor-to-ceiling window. “What a view. But I still like the one at home better.”

At home. Did the apartment really feel like a home for Sherry?

Before she could ask, Sherry spun back to her. “Did I tell you that Danielle and Ruth have told everybody that they’re dating?”

Why the sudden change of topic? “Really? Wow, that’s great.” Madison was happy for Danielle, but at the same time, all she could think of was how it might feel to date the woman you were in love with, how it might feel to really be in a relationship…with Sherry.

Strangely, instead of thinking about them in an intimate setting, her mind provided images of her and Sherry working side by side at the Archer, laughing and flirting.

No! Working at the Archer was her past, and Sherry was fulfilling a contract with her, nothing else. She just had to get that into her head, and all would be fine. Okay, she and Sherry got along great, and maybe they were even becoming friends. But there couldn’t and wouldn’t be more. Ever. “Wanna see what I do all day?”

Chapter 31

Sherry sat down on the pew and glanced at Mrs. Fielding sitting beside Madison. To spend Christmas Eve with this woman reminded her of the story of Ebenezer Scrooge.

Jake took a seat between Sherry and Madison. With wide eyes, he took it all in. “What happens now?”

Sherry lowered her gaze in shame for not going with him to at least one service before.

“We sit around, listen to what the pastor has to say, sing a little bit out of here” —Madison held up the book in question—“and go home again.”

“Madison!”

“What? I’m sorry, Grandmother, but it’s the truth.”

Sherry bit her lip, trying not to laugh, and turned to Mrs. Fielding. “Jake hasn’t had the opportunity to visit a church yet.”

“Mom, that’s not true. Rita Mae took me to a church.”

“Really? When was that?” Why hadn’t Rita Mae told her?

“Last summer. She said we had to pray so that we would have more money.”

“Well.” Mrs. Fielding leaned back. “That wish certainly came true, didn’t it?”

Jake nodded. “Yeah, but when Rita Mae and I went, the people in the church looked happier. And they were standing and singing great songs about Jesus.”

“Baby, I’m afraid tonight’s sermon will be different.”

“Because we’re not Baptists, young man.”

Jake furrowed his brow. “Then what are we?”

“Methodists,” Mrs. Fielding said.

“You can become whatever you want,” Sherry said. “And of course you can also become a Baptist if you like that more.”

“Good heavens, what kind of nonsense are you teaching your son? He’s a child. He can’t decide anything for himself.”

Jake looked back and forth between Mrs. Fielding and Sherry while rubbing his neck.

The gesture reminded her of Madison, who sometimes did it when unsure about how to react. Sherry couldn’t help but smile.

Mrs. Fielding crossed her arms. “Do you even know what we celebrate today, young man?”

“Of course I know.” Jake turned and smiled at Rita Mae, who sat in the pew behind them and who hadn’t said anything since setting foot into the church. Now she was smiling and nodding at him encouragingly.

“Jesus was born a loooooong time ago. And just like the three Magi brought the little baby Jesus some presents because they were so happy he was born, Santa Claus does the same to us every year. To remind us of Jesus and, um, to reward us if we were good all year like Jesus was good all his life.”

Madison gave Jake a kiss on his forehead. “I couldn’t have said it better.”

Over Jake’s head, Madison’s and Sherry’s gazes met.

Madison never made Jake feel as if he was saying something wrong. Instead she praised him and showed him how much he was loved.

She leaned over to Madison and gave her a kiss on the cheek, which made Madison blush and smile.

Over the course of the service, they looked at each other repeatedly. Sometimes they smiled; sometimes their expressions became serious. It was nothing but looks, but Sherry could feel them everywhere.

“I thought he would never fall asleep,” Madison whispered after she had closed the door to his room. Even though he hadn’t wanted to fall asleep, it had felt wonderful to take turns with Sherry, reading to him and caressing his head from time to time until he’d finally fallen asleep.

“Jake had an exciting day,” Sherry said. “Especially the church service with your grandmother was an adventure for him.”

“I’m surprised he didn’t fall asleep. I almost did a couple of times.”

Sherry giggled. “For Rita Mae, it definitely did the trick. I’ve never seen her go to bed so fast.”

“If she’d run to the bathroom, I would have sworn she had a bad stomach.”

“Madison!”

Madison winked at her and strolled to the living room. “But maybe she just wanted to avoid helping us place the presents under the Christmas tree.”

Sherry followed her. “Who knows?” Madison changed direction to the bedroom, but Sherry held her back. “Let’s sit down for a moment before we start.”

Surprised, Madison paused and let herself be pulled onto the couch. “Okay.”

“This pastor was really in a sour mood. All this talk about sin…”

“You listened to him?”

“You didn’t?” When Madison shrugged, Sherry slapped her lightly on the arm. “Shame on you, Madison Fielding. Well, I’m just glad Jake still believes in Santa Claus. Even though it doesn’t really have anything to do with Christianity, it still brings a little magic to Christmas, don’t you think?”

Madison had never really thought about it, but maybe Sherry was right. She hoped that for Jake Christmas was something magical.

“How were you as a kid on Christmas?”

“After I had to move in with Grandmother Eileen, there wasn’t any magic involved anymore, that’s for sure. I learned quickly that the postman brought Christmas presents and not Santa Claus.”

Sherry gently touched her forearm. “And before that?”

“Before the death of my parents?”

Sherry nodded. “What about your mother? You’ve barely told me anything about her.”

Madison laid her arm on the backrest behind Sherry. It was a silent invitation for Sherry to snuggle up to her, and she immediately did so and leaned her head against Madison’s shoulder.

Their cuddling had become more frequent with every passing day, but Madison refused to think about what it meant.

Not even with Danielle had she talked about her mother. Sometimes she spoke about her father, but never about her mother. It had always felt as if she had to protect the memory of her, or that she would lose something precious if she talked about her.

But she wanted to tell Sherry about her mother. So what had changed? Before she could find an answer or talk herself out of it, she said, “Christmas was always a time just for the three of us. A time of”—Madison swallowed—“love.”

Sherry caressed her arm. “That sounds nice.” After some silence, she asked, “How about the rest of the year?”

“My mother brought me to bed every evening. She always made time for me, no matter how much she had to work.”

“What did she do for a living?”

“She was an architect.” Madison slid down some more and pulled Sherry with her. “She was working at an architect’s office that Fielding Inc. had retained for building a new branch.”

“And that’s when your parents fell in love?”

Madison had to smile when she recalled the story that Mildred, Grandmother Eileen’s cook, had told her once. “No, not right then. My mother couldn’t stand my father. She thought he was arrogant and smug.”

“Sounds familiar.” Sherry grinned at her.

“I’m pretty similar to my father, am I?”

For a while, Sherry was silent as if searching for the right words. “I don’t know. I never net him. But—” Sherry lowered her gaze.

“But what?” Madison took Sherry’s jaw between thumb and forefinger and softly nudged it to make eye contact. What did Sherry see when she looked at her? Madison let her hand fall away from Sherry’s chin.

“Maybe it wasn’t easy with you in the beginning. But I’ve told you before and I meant it: you’ve changed.” Sherry took Madison’s hand and caressed it with her thumb. After a while, she let go abruptly as if just now becoming aware of what she’d been doing. She looked out the window. “And how did they become a couple then? Your parents, I mean.”

Madison turned away from Sherry’s beautiful profile. “I was told that my father was head over heels with her and that he didn’t give up until she agreed to go out with him. The rest, as they say, is history.” When Madison tried to imagine this, her mother somehow became Sherry and her father became herself.

“Your mother kept working in her old job after they got married and your father was the head of Fielding Inc., right?”

“Mm-hmm? No. My grandfather was the head back then.”

“Where are your thoughts right now?” Sherry asked softly after a few moments of silence.

Madison pulled her even closer, so that Sherry was almost sitting on her lap. To her own surprise, she heard herself say, “My father couldn’t live without my mother. He loved her more than anything else in the world.” In a whisper, she added, “More than me.”

This time it was Sherry who nudged Madison’s jaw until they looked at each other.

The light was dim, but Madison could have sworn that Sherry had tears in her eyes. “I really meant what I said. You are lovable. More than you know and more than I ever would have thought possible when I first met you.”

Madison had a huge lump in her throat. “I blackmailed you to work for me,” she choked out. “How can you say I’m—?”

Sherry put one finger to Madison’s lips, silencing her.

The gesture was so intimate that it robbed Madison of breath.

“Don’t think about it. If you were to ask me today if I’d do it, I wouldn’t hesitate for a second. I want to help you to be happy. And if that means I have to play your girlfriend so that you can inherit more money than you could ever spend, then so be it.”

Something between anger and shame rushed through her. Sherry wanted to help her be happy. And all I want is the damn money. Right?

Of course. That’s what life was all about, wasn’t it?

Her eyes burned, and she blinked a few times to get rid of the tears. To no avail. “Thank you,” she whispered.

Sherry took a deep breath. God, it smelled heavenly. Madison’s slight woody scent mixed with her unique enticing smell of… Her eyes snapped open.

Madison!

Sherry was snuggled against Madison, almost on top of her.

Even though it was dark in the bedroom, Sherry could make out Madison’s face. Her eyes were closed, and she was smiling.

She’s sleeping.

Sherry looked around. She was lying entirely on Madison’s side of the bed. How had she moved that far in her sleep in this huge bed? Yes, she enjoyed being close to Madison, but… Wait! Where’s my left hand?

When she tried to withdraw her fingers from wherever they lay, Madison clumsily covered Sherry’s hand with her own.

After a moment, she felt Madison’s belly button and breathed a sigh of relief. Thank God she wasn’t touching Madison inappropriately.

Madison leaned her check against Sherry’s forehead and hummed quietly. It seemed that Madison’s subconscious had interpreted Sherry’s movement as an attempt to cuddle.

How will I get out of this position without waking her? Did she even want to? Of course I do. Maybe Madison would let go of her soon so that she could roll over. Until then, she would make the most of this and allow herself to enjoy their closeness.

She relaxed into Madison’s touch. Just a minute…

Sherry snuggled into Madison. Below her pajama top, Sherry’s warm hand slowly caressed the skin of her belly. Sherry’s head lay on her shoulder, and her breath pleasantly tickled her neck, causing the nicest of sensations all over her body.

Madison took a deep breath and enjoyed the smell of Sherry’s shampoo and her enticing, unique scent. What a wonderful dream. Hopefully, she wouldn’t wake up anytime soon.

Wait a minute! Why wasn’t she able to see anything, if this was a dream?

Almost afraid of what she might discover, she slowly opened her eyes.

Oh my God.

Sherry was indeed lying pressed against her side. Her breathing was steady and slow.

In all the nights that they’d shared a bed, something like this had never happened. Not even when Jake had slept with them and Sherry had been closer to her than usual.

But now Sherry was snuggled up to her. And Madison had obviously wrapped her up in her arms while she had been asleep. I should wake her. She wouldn’t like the fact that I’m holding her.

On the other hand, nobody would get hurt if she enjoyed it for just a few more moments. It was totally harmless. Like…like when she had cuddled with Jake. Well, not exactly like that.

Madison took a deep breath, inhaling Sherry’s scent, and relaxed into her touch. She closed her eyes and listened to Sherry’s regular breathing.

It had to be a dream after all. Nothing felt this good in real life.

The mattress dipped. Then something pinched Madison’s leg before shaking her shoulder.

The warm and soft body next to her fit her dream about holding Sherry while they slept, but all this ruckus did not. She forced her eyes open. “What—?”

“Mom, Madison, wake up! It’s morning and Santa Claus brought presents. They’re all lying under the Christmas tree.” Jake wriggled between her and Sherry’s legs, grabbed Madison’s shoulder, and shook it for all it was worth.

Groaning, she rolled away from him, feeling something like a caress on her belly with the movement, but she was too tired to think about the cause of the pleasant sensation. “Five minutes.” She shut her eyes again.

The mattress trembled when Jake jumped up and down, and the warmth she had felt on her back disappeared, leaving a cool spot in its wake.

“Baby, it’s barely six,” Sherry groaned.

Madison looked over her shoulder.

Sherry—very close to her back—had turned onto her belly and was now covering her face with her pillow. “Just give us a few more minutes. I promise the presents won’t go away.” Her muffled voice came from under the pillow.

Jake kept jumping up and down. “But I want to open them now.”

Sherry moaned and peeked at him from under the pillow. “Please, Jake. You can lie down with us if you like and sleep some more.”

The jumping stopped. “But I’m not tired anymore.”

Even though they had gone to bed shortly after putting the presents under the tree, Madison had been awake much longer afterward because she’d kept thinking about Grandmother Eileen’s words after church when they’d been alone.

She had taken Madison aside to tell her again that she should end her relationship with Sherry.

But she didn’t want to think about that right now. She would ignore it, along with the fluttering in her belly at the thought of waking up holding Sherry. It obviously hadn’t been a dream. “Jake, if you go back to bed now, I’ll buy you a huge peperoni pizza.”

“Madison!”

Sherry’s faux shocked voice made Madison smile. She rolled onto her back and grinned at Sherry, who had put the pillow aside. “Yeah?”

“Stop bribing him.”

“I don’t want pizza,” Jake said. “I want presents.”

Her cheeks hurt from grinning so strongly at their playfulness. “Sherry, your son isn’t bribable.”

“So I’ve heard. Usually, it’s grasshopper, and now he’s my son, huh?”

“Can we go now? Please?”

Madison ignored Jake’s plea. “He is your son, or do you want to deny it?”

Sherry turned on her back and held up both hands in defeat. “I give up. Jake, brush your teeth. Then we’ll open the presents.”

“Yippee!” Jake jumped down from the bed and raced out of the bedroom.

“And don’t forget to tell Rita Mae,” Sherry shouted after him before facing Madison. “I’ll sell him to you for a buck.”

Madison giggled like a schoolgirl. “That’s daylight robbery.” Nudging Sherry’s shoulder, she added, “Let’s go. Your son is waiting.”

Sherry was still so close to her that Madison became aware of her body heat again. Memories of minutes ago made her hesitate, but then she gave in to what she wanted so badly and opened her arms.

Sherry looked at her strangely for a second before snuggling into her. “Merry Christmas.”

Madison wrapped her arms around her and took a deep breath, inhaling Sherry’s enticing scent. Immediately, her body relaxed. Smiling, she realized that even though the day was still very young and Jake had woken them none too gently, this was already the best Christmas morning of her life. “Merry Christmas.” She let her head come to rest against Sherry’s.

“I’ve brushed my teeth, and Rita Mae is awake too,” Jake shouted from the living room.

Sherry and Madison groaned in unison.

Chapter 32

Madison stopped the car. She lowered her window, leaned out of her enclosed BMW convertible, and waved into the camera. Within seconds, the gate opened. She parked the car next to three limousines at the end of the driveway. “Are you nervous?”

“I’m good,” Sherry said. “How bad can it be? It’s just a New Year’s party.”

“Famous last words.” Madison killed the engine. “I should’ve told you earlier, but…”

“But what?”

Madison signed. “Even my grandmother calls some of tonight’s attendees snobs.”

“You’ve got to be kidding me.”

“I wish. This New Year’s party will be the first since my sixteen’s birthday where I’m not smashed.” She shook her head at the irony of it. “In all those years, it never occurred to me that I might have a problem with alcohol. I only drank a lot because it made me feel good and to…I don’t know, not to think so much, I guess. But now…” She shrugged. “I think I really drank too much. And for much too long.”

Sherry’s eyes shone with something which, after a few moments, Madison recognized as pride before she touched Madison’s arm.

When Sherry let go of her, she glanced toward the main house with something that looked very much like apprehension. “Any last tips?”

“Yes. Remember these three sentences to be on the safe side.”

“Let’s hear it.”

“‘No, really?,’ ‘that’s scandalous,’ and ‘but of course.’”

“Um, I don’t think any of those are going to help me.”

Madison smirked. “You just wait and see.” She got out of the car, rushed around it, and opened the passenger door for Sherry. Holding out her hand, Madison helped her out of her seat.

Sherry took in Madison’s black evening gown that reached her ankles. Even though it wasn’t revealing much skin, it fit her very nicely, if she said so herself.

Madison’s mouth went dry when she saw the appreciation and something else in her eyes. Lust? Nah, impossible. Sherry wasn’t interested in her that way.

When Sherry looked away, Madison used the chance to admire Sherry and her long, red evening gown with its heart-stoppingly low neckline.

“You take my breath away,” she said without thinking.

Sherry picked at an imaginary piece of lint. “You chose the dress.”

She couldn’t have stopped her words if she’d wanted to. “It’s not the dress I’m talking about.”

Sherry opened her mouth but snapped it shut again when a young man ran toward them.

“Good evening, ma’am. I’m sorry I kept you waiting. May I park your car for you?”

Madison handed him the car keys. “Good evening. Please see to it that we can depart at any time. Last time, I was totally boxed in.”

“Yes, ma’am.”

When Sherry laid her hand in the crook of Madison’s arm, they started to walk to the main house.

After a few steps, Madison turned back to the man. “Thank you.”

When a servant had opened the door to them and taken their coats, they stood in front of the double doors leading to the parlor.

“Ready?” Madison asked. Her warm hand touched Sherry’s lower back, radiating warmth over her whole body.

Sherry nodded. Her heart was pounding against her ribcage. What if she embarrassed Madison somehow?

Madison pulled the doors open, took Sherry’s hand, and entered the parlor.

Her touch calmed and excited Sherry at the same time. Before she’d met Madison, she had no idea that one touch could evoke both feelings at the same time.

“Madison, there you are,” Mrs. Fielding called from across the room. The sound of her voice reminded Sherry of the screeching of wheels when a car hit the brakes at full speed. And she was aware that Mrs. Fielding had only addressed her granddaughter, while ignoring Sherry completely.

All conversations in the room ceased, and dozens of pairs of eyes turned to them.

Sherry squeezed Madison’s hand tighter.

Mrs. Fielding’s long, high-necked dress allowed for only tiny steps, so it took a while until she had reached them. “I was concerned you wouldn’t show up.”

Either Madison hadn’t heard the criticism in her words or had chosen to ignore it. “We would never miss your legendary New Year’s party.” She leaned forward for an air-kiss.

The corners of Mrs. Fielding’s mouth moved upward, but her facial expression didn’t resemble a smile in the least. “Of course you wouldn’t.” She gestured at the other guests. “You’d better mingle.” Mrs. Fielding shifted her weight but seemed to have problems standing steady while doing so.

“As you wish,” Madison said. With a smile just as fake as her grandmother’s, she led Sherry to a group of five women who were scrutinizing them as if they were aliens.

“Good evening,” Madison said in her most charming voice.

A quiet “Good evening” came from the women. They all wore long evening gowns, and at least half a ton of makeup covered their faces. That they were even able to stand with so many expensive rocks around their necks and on their earlobes was likely down to the vast quantity of alcohol they’d obviously consumed. All of them smelled like a distillery. But it could also have been their perfume, the fumes of which were almost killing Sherry’s sense of smell.

“It’s so wonderful,” Sherry began, “to be here tonight and to finally get the chance to meet Mrs. Fielding’s friends.”

A screeching laugh, sounding strangely like the screaming of a hyena, came from one of the women.

Sherry flinched.

Another woman—who seemed to be used to hearing this scary noise—said, “Eileen always hosts the best parties.”

“Yes, the best,” the woman beside her, wearing an unnaturally huge diamond watch on her left wrist, said. She let her gaze roam through the room before landing on Sherry with a piercing stare. “So, you are Madison’s lesbian companion?”

Sherry forced a smile. To pretend to be Madison’s partner was no longer difficult for her. But how this woman had addressed her as a “lesbian companion” spoke of astonishment at best and disgust at worst. “That’s correct.”

“Because of these liberals at the Supreme Court, homosexuals can even marry now,” Hyena said. “Are you planning to do that too?”

“Really?” a woman speaking for the first time asked without waiting for Sherry to answer. “Even gay men?”

“That’s scandalous,” the woman who had praised Mrs. Fielding’s party said.

Sherry had to bite her lip to stop herself from laughing. Madison had been right: this sentence was going to be useful as one of their standard replies. Her amusement surpassed her surprise regarding their bigotry and their obviously poor education. How could they have missed the Supreme Court’s decision?

“I’ve said it again and again,” the woman with the huge diamond watch on her wrist said. “The democrats and their misguided supporters will ruin our great country. They shouldn’t be allowed to be in any position of power.”

“Hear, hear,” Hyena said.

Sherry glanced at Madison. Were these women making fun of her? They were like bad caricatures of snobs on TV.

“Would you excuse us, please?” Madison asked. “I see countless curious eyes on my lovely companion.” With a tense smile, she pulled Sherry away from them.

“Please tell me they were trying to be funny and were just reenacting a scene from Dynasty or something.”

“Nope.” She stopped in front of a group of four men. Three of them were smoking thick cigars and were half-hidden in thick blue clouds.

Sherry blinked against the sting in her eyes and used the chance to look around. Most groups were strictly divided by gender. Rita Mae wouldn’t believe her when she told her about these people.

“Good evening, gentlemen,” Madison said.

“Good evening, Madison,” one of the smokers said. “Is that your girlfriend?”

Madison smiled, this time more genuine than when addressing the women.

The man held out his hand. “I’m Reginald Fielding the third. Eileen is my sister-in-law.”

“He’s Danielle’s grandfather,” Madison whispered in Sherry’s ear.

Sherry leaned in to Madison, a pleasant tingle spreading from her ear to throughout her body, but she straightened immediately when she became aware of what she was doing. “It’s a pleasure, sir.” She took his offered hand.

Mr. Fielding nodded approvingly. “Lovely.”

“Thank you, Uncle Reginald.” Madison craned her neck. “Where’s Aunt Abigail?”

“She’s indisposed.”

“Oh, I’m sorry to hear that.”

Sherry looked back and forth between them as if she were watching a tennis match. Madison seemed to like him. It wasn’t so much what she said—more how she said it. “May I ask what’s ailing her?”

Madison stared at Sherry as if she’d asked something inappropriate.

Mr. Fielding took a deep drag of his cigar before blowing out a thick cloud of smoke. “Nothing serious. Thank you for asking.”

Once more, Sherry had to blink against the burning smoke.

Madison pulled her away. “We’d better continue our rounds. See you later.”

When they were out of earshot, Sherry held her back. “Did I say something wrong?”

“Aunt Abigail is at the Betty Ford Clinic. I thought she’d be out by now.”

“She’s in reh—”

“Yes. She took an overdose of sleeping pills.”

“Oh my God. On purpose?”

“I don’t think so. But she’s been taking pills for a long time. Now her doctor has put a stop to it and sent her to the clinic to get help.”

“That has to be a nightmare for your uncle.”

“Their marriage has been over for years.”

“Why don’t they get a divorce, then?”

“Nobody in the Fielding family has ever gotten divorced. It’s unheard of.”

“So this is where you’re hiding,” said an overweight older woman wearing a sequined sack that was probably supposed to pass as a dress.

“Hello, Sophia. Sherry, this is my godmother, Sophia.”

“Nice to meet you.” Sherry’s thoughts were still on the divorce thing. No matter the family tradition, why would anybody stay married if they were unhappy?

“Did you hear what they’re saying about Olivia?”

“No. What are they saying?” Madison asked.

Sophia peeked over her shoulder and took a step closer. “You haven’t heard it from me, but they say Olivia has a bun in the oven. Again.” After a dramatic pause, she added, “From her yoga instructor.”

“No!” Madison managed to fake a scandalized tone.

Sherry needed all her self-control not to burst out laughing. This was the perfect chance to try one of Madison’s suggested three standard answers. “That’s scandalous.”

Madison bit her lip.

“Indeed,” Sophia said. “Poor James. He’s totally clueless, and he adores her. If he knew two of his three children are not his, it would be the death of him.”

Sherry wanted to ask why nobody thought it necessary to enlighten James, but Madison said her goodbyes and pulled her away.

“Olivia probably doesn’t even have a yoga instructor,” Madison murmured before plastering on yet another artificial smile to approach the next group.

After a brief introduction and chat, one of the three stiff women said, “Sherry, you must come back later to tell us more about yourself.”

What had Madison told her to say? “But of course.”

The women smiled, satisfied.

A few feet away, Sherry whispered into Madison’s ear, “I can’t believe it, but you were right about your three sentences.”

Madison gave her a fleeting kiss on the cheek. “Decades of experience.” She checked her wristwatch. “About three more hours left until midnight. Do you think you’ll survive that long?”

“Do I have a choice?”

“No.”

Sherry squeezed Madison’s hand. “Then lead the way. The next snobs and gossips are waiting.”

“I like your way of thinking.”

“Ten, nine, eight…” Everybody, some slurring, some shouting, was counting down.

Madison’s pulse was racing. It had been weeks since she had kissed Sherry on the lips—not that even an hour had passed without her thinking about it.

Sherry licked her lips and followed Madison’s example of placing her glass on a shelf.

“Four, three, two, one.” Cheering drowned out everything else when the New Year began.

“Happy New Year, Sherry,” Madison said breathlessly, and stepped up to her.

“To you too.”

Madison had to read from Sherry’s irresistible lips to understand her over the noise.

Everything faded away when she tilted her head to Sherry and kissed her softly. Unable to think about what she was doing, she wrapped her arms around Sherry’s fragile form. Like always when they kissed, heat surged through her body immediately.

“Happy New Year,” Grandmother Eileen slurred beside them.

Madison forced herself to step away from Sherry. She cleared her throat. “Happy New Year, Grandmother.”

Grandmother Eileen stopped a waitress.

“Yes, ma’am?” the young woman asked.

“Bring me another scotch.”

Her grandmother already smelled like a liquor store after an earthquake. Given that she usually restrained herself somehow, she probably still wasn’t over her sister’s death. Or maybe she’s lost track of all the booze she has consumed. Whatever it was, she should go to bed before she did or said something to embarrass herself.

In the past, Madison wouldn’t have cared, maybe would have even liked the idea of destroying Grandmother Eileen’s carefully built imagine of the highly educated and successful businesswoman. But now… It just would’ve felt wrong to let that happen. “Can I talk to you in the hall?”

“In the hall?” Grandmother Eileen almost tripped when the waitress she had been holding on to left to get her scotch.

“It’s delicate,” Madison whispered in a conspiratorial way she was sure would get her grandmother’s attention.

“Delicate?” she asked much too loud, and two people close by sent them curious stares.

“Yes.”

“Well, then.” With swaying hips, she staggered ahead.

“What are you up to?” Sherry asked quietly.

“Rescuing her from herself.” When Madison saw her grandmother’s new butler, who she didn’t know by name yet, she waved him over.

The butler followed them into the hall. “Yes, ma’am?”

“I need your help. Your discretion is obligatory.”

The maybe fifty-year-old man looked at her with a neutral expression. He was a professional. “You can count on me, ma’am.”

Leaning closer to him, she whispered, “I need your help to get my grandmother to bed. She’s had a few drinks too many.”

“I understand,” he said, as if Madison had asked him to get her coat.

She doubted her grandmother knew what a good servant she had in him.

When the butler had closed the doors to the parlor, Grandmother Eileen spun around and almost lost her balance in the process. She grabbed Madison’s arm for a second before letting go again. “So, talk.”

“Grandmother, I think you should go to bed.”

“What?” she screeched.

Sherry moved between Madison and her grandmother. “Did you hear about Olivia?”

“Olivia?”

Sherry nodded and wrapped one arm around her grandmother. Slowly, she led her toward the stairs. “It seems she’s been having an affair with her yoga instructor.”

Eileen almost toppled over. “Really? That’s scandalous!”

“It sure is.” She kept leading her up, step by step. “But you haven’t heard the worst part yet.”

“What’s that?”

They reached the first floor, and Sherry sent Madison and the butler a questioning gaze.

The butler pointed to the right and held up two fingers.

Sherry led her grandmother to the right. “Olivia is pregnant by him.”

“No!”

“Oh yes.”

Madison and the butler followed in silence.

She’s incredible. How had she known what to do? Then it hit her: Sherry’s mother was an alcoholic. She probably had years of experience handling her inebriated mother.

“Who did you hear that from?”

Sherry opened the door to Grandmother Eileen’s bedroom and switched the light on. “Sophia.”

“Sophia?” An uncharacteristic snort escaped Grandmother Eileen. “I wouldn’t even believe her if she told me she’s a woman.” She squinted. “What are we doing in my bedroom?” She sucked in a breath. “Isn’t one Fielding woman enough for you?”

Madison had to cover her mouth not to giggle.

But Grandmother Eileen seemed to have heard her anyway and spun around. She lost her equilibrium and fell.

Sherry tried to hold her up but failed.

Madison and the butler helped her and carried her to the bed together.

“Leonard?” her grandmother asked. “What are you doing here?” She spoke very slowly. Most likely she needed her full concentration to talk.

“Well, because you asked him to accompany us,” Sherry said as if she couldn’t believe Grandmother Eileen had forgotten.

“I did?”

She would never fall for it, but Madison nodded anyway. “You said you’d had enough of these scandalmongers and wanted to go to bed.”

“But I’m not even tired.”

“Don’t you remember?” Sherry asked. “You told us you were feeling dizzy and asked us to accompany you upstairs.”

Her grandmother turned to Madison. “Is that true?”

“Would I ever lie to you?”

Clumsily, Grandmother Eileen patted Madison’s cheek in an almost affectionate way. “You’d do anything for money. Lying is the smallest of things you’d do.” She sighed. “That’s why I can’t understand why you haven’t broken up with this waitress by now. It’s the only thing standing between you and your inheritance.”

It felt as if a bucket of ice had been poured over Madison’s head. “Y-you should go to bed now, Grandmother. You don’t know what you’re saying.” She glanced over her shoulder to Sherry, who was as white as a sheet.

“I know exactly what I’m saying, and I’m perfectly able to put myself to bed.”

“Of course, ma’am.” Leonard sent Madison a questioning look.

It took her a few seconds to understand that he was waiting for her instructions. “Thank you. You can go.”

Sherry took a thin blanket from a chair and covered Grandmother Eileen with it. “Good night,” she said in a cold voice.

Madison followed Sherry to the door and switched off the light. She felt as if she was in a daze. The damned witch had destroyed everything. Sherry now knew that Madison could have let her go already but hadn’t. She’ll move out. She’s going to leave me. Panic threatened to overwhelm her.

Sherry didn’t even look at her when they descended the stairs.

Leonard waited for them in the lobby.

“Let everybody know my grandmother isn’t feeling well,” Madison said on autopilot.

“Of course.”

“And please get us our coats,” Sherry said, an icy lilt to her voice. “We’re leaving.”

“Yes, ma’am.” Leonard left through a side door.

“Sherry, I—”

Sherry held up a hand. “Whatever you’re about to say, you’d better wait until we’re alone.”

Aside from a few people still celebrating the arrival of the New Year, the streets were empty. Sherry looked at the passing sidewalks wet from the rain falling on their…on Madison’s car. The rhythmic squeaking from the windshield wipers was the only noise in the car.

Madison didn’t say a word, and that was good.

Sherry was so angry that she couldn’t think clearly. Mrs. Fielding’s unsteadiness and slurring had brought up memories long forgotten. Shaken by the frightening images of her childhood, all she had wanted to do had been to flee into Madison’s arms.

But with just a few sentences, Mrs. Fielding had thrown her feelings in the opposite direction. She couldn’t get away from Madison fast enough. Like her mother, Madison had lied to her, manipulated her, and used her.

Her heart hammered against her ribcage as if planning to crush it. “When did your grandmother tell you to dump me?” Sherry couldn’t believe how calm she sounded.

“It wasn’t like that.” Madison opened her side window a crack as if needing more air.

“I’m waiting.” She didn’t want to hear Madison’s voice right now, but she wanted—no, she needed to know how long Madison had played her for a fool.

“She told me a few weeks back. Shortly after I began working at the firm.”

“A few weeks back?” Sherry croaked.

“She said I should search for another girlfriend, one that in her opinion would suit me better.” Madison stared ahead, but in the intermittent light of the street lamps it almost seemed as if she was blinking more often. Was she fighting tears?

For a split second, confusion clouded her anger. Why had Madison lied to her? It made no sense. “We had an agreement. I was going to help you secure your inheritance. I held up my part of the deal. But you lied to me, used me.”

“What’s your problem?” Madison almost hyperventilated. “My behavior was to your advantage, wasn’t it? As long as this continues, you’ll get your money.”

“What’s my problem? You lied to me!” For the first time in her life, she had to hold herself back from slapping someone. “Did you think if we kept playing our roles that you would eventually get me to sleep with you? Is that it?” She knew instantly that this wasn’t the case, but what else could it be? Was she afraid of losing their friendship? If she was, she had done exactly the wrong thing. You didn’t lie to friends. Especially not like this.

Madison roughly wiped away a tear running down her cheek. She shook her head but then started nodding. “Damn, you got me. That was my plan.” It sounded so artificial. “It almost worked. Anyway, we’re done. The contract is officially terminated. I’ll arrange the transfer of the ten thousand dollars tomorrow and will get someone to help you move out. This also applies to Rita Mae, should she choose to leave as well.” Madison swallowed. “I’ll keep paying for Jake’s school. The amount is peanuts to me, and he’s only just started his new school year, so…” Madison left the rest of the sentence unsaid.

Sherry couldn’t think. An hour ago, her life had been fine, and now everything was about to change again. Drastically.

God, Jake would be devastated. Images of how Madison played and cuddled with him flooded her mind.

She couldn’t tell if the drive home took forever or only a few minutes.

Together, they stepped into the elevator and then into the apartment.

It was no longer her home. Tomorrow, she would start searching for a place that really would be her home.

Chapter 33

Numb. Madison felt totally numb. After an extra-hot shower, to feel at least something, she had put on black satin pajamas. Their color fit her mood perfectly. Now she stood frozen in front of the floor-to-ceiling window in her living room.

Looking out over the high buildings of the city, it was always difficult to see the stars. Because of the smoke from the fireworks and the thick clouds hovering over the sky, it was impossible tonight. Rain lashed against the window whenever the wind gusted.

It was as if the heavens were crying. But it was Madison who had tears running down her cheeks.

Angry at her emotional outburst, she wiped yet another tear from her face. This was ridiculous. She had gotten used to the waitress and her boy; that was all. But she was smart enough to know that it never paid off to develop real feelings for someone. You just got hurt. So stop whining.

“Madison?”

It seemed Sherry was done with her own shower in the other bathroom. Without turning, she tried to sound annoyed when she said, “Yeah?”

Sherry didn’t answer. Instead, Madison heard receding steps. She whirled around.

Sherry walked toward the bedroom but came back out seconds later with something huge in her hands. What, Madison couldn’t tell for sure in the darkness, but her mind supplied the answer: her pillow and a blanket.

Sherry put them on the couch, sat down beside the bundle, and waited.

She’s waiting for me to go into the bedroom. Anger surged through her, so strong she started trembling.

With her hands balled into fists, she stomped to the couch, stopped very close in front of Sherry, and stared down at her. She opened her mouth and…nothing. Not one single word would come out.

In a soft, almost fragile voice, Sherry asked, “Yeah?”

Madison tried to speak; she really did. But her vocal cords wouldn’t obey. There’s nothing more to say. She should just leave. Her legs wouldn’t listen to her mind, though, and she finally lost the last traces of control over her body when she sank on her knees directly in front of Sherry. Then, suddenly, her voice was back, but it didn’t say what Madison wanted it to say. “Don’t go.” Even more quietly, she added, “Please.”

After a second, or maybe an hour, it dawned on her that she was making a total fool of herself.

Just when she was about to get up, Sherry took one of Madison’s fists in her hands and loosened each finger, one at a time, in a gentle gesture. Then she cradled Madison’s hand carefully in her own, almost as if she were holding a treasure. “We were both pretty stirred up earlier and might have said things we didn’t mean. I’m still confused. But one thing I’m sure of. You haven’t told me the truth when you—”

Madison jumped up and broke their contact in the process. It almost physically hurt. “Maybe I should have told you about what my grandmother asked me to do, but—”

“I’m not talking about that.” Sherry took both of Madison’s hands and pulled her down to sit beside her. “You didn’t tell me the truth about why you hid it from me.”

Her warm hands around Madison’s cold ones were so tender that all Madison wanted to do was flee. “I…I don’t want you to go.” Saying those few words seemed to suck all the energy out of her.

When Sherry finally answered, it was very quiet. “And then?”

Madison blinked. “What do you mean?”

“Your grandmother was clear about it. Jake and I stand between you and your inheritance. Madison, we’re here for nothing more than helping you get your inheritance. That’s all you ever wanted from day one.”

She was right.

“Your plan worked,” Sherry said. “You are exactly where you wanted to be.”

Worked? Where I wanted to be? Then why did it feel so wrong? Why had she stopped caring about Fielding Inc. and all the money? Because it all means nothing without Sherry. She leaned heavily against the back of the couch as if she had been punched.

And that was exactly how she felt when it hit her: I love her. “Oh, God,” she croaked. No, no, no. That couldn’t be. She couldn’t love anyone, just as nobody could love her. “Nobody.”

Sherry rubbed one of Madison’s hands with her thumb. “Are you okay?”

Madison shook her head. No, she wasn’t okay. Why did she have to fall in love with Sherry of all people? A woman who would never love her back. Nobody could ever love you. You’re a good-for-nothing. And certainly not good for love.

Sherry let go of her hands and pulled her into a hug instead.

Madison tensed, but then she allowed herself to get lost in the gentle touch. For all she knew, it could be the last time Sherry held her. She pulled Sherry closer until she was almost sitting on her lap. A deep breath helped her shut out everything but Sherry for a moment. Reality could wait.

“Talk to me,” Sherry whispered after a while, as if speaking more loudly would chase this wonderful illusion of closeness away.

Madison held her even tighter and hoped not to hurt her in the process. Maybe a part of her was afraid Sherry would leave if she didn’t hold her close enough. “I’m not good at this.”

“I remember you telling me that before, but what exactly is this?”

Madison hid her face in Sherry’s neck. “Feelings,” she mumbled.

Goose bumps formed under Madison’s lips, and she forced herself to withdraw. It hadn’t been her intention to make Sherry uncomfortable.

“What are you feeling?” Sherry asked so quietly that Madison had to strain to hear her.

Their faces were so close they were breathing the same air.

Even if she had wanted to, she was unable to hold herself back. She closed the distance between them and gave Sherry a featherlight kiss on her lips.

Sherry didn’t move for a few heartbeats, then curved her hands around the back of Madison’s head to pull her even closer.

What did it mean? Madison gave up on trying to find an answer to the question, preferring to focus on the gentle contact.

She could have continued this almost-chaste kiss forever, but then Sherry flicked her tongue across Madison’s lips.

Moaning, Madison opened her mouth willingly and was rewarded with Sherry’s hesitant tongue flickering past her lips. Her whole body prickled in the most pleasant way, and her heart warmed from the inside out.

Sherry’s kiss was neither possessive nor overly passionate; it was full of exploration.

She’s kissing me! And this time, it was no dream.

Eventually, they broke the kiss. Madison leaned her forehead against Sherry’s. Both were breathing heavily.

Madison couldn’t stop the words tumbling out of her. “I don’t want you to go. You and Jake… I want you to stay.”

“But your grandmother—?”

“I don’t care what she wants. I don’t care about anything as long as you don’t leave me.”

Sherry was quiet. She didn’t even seem to breathe.

“Tell me you’ll stay. Please.” Never in her life had she spoken in such a pleading tone. But never had she been so desperate for something—for someone.

It seemed to take forever until Sherry nodded and kissed her again.

This kiss had nothing in common with the other one. It was passionate. Wild. Sherry pushed Madison back until she lay flat on her back with Sherry on top of her.

To feel Sherry pressing her down while they kissed was like nothing else. Madison was electrified, and she felt a surge between her legs. Heterosexual? Ha, I don’t think so! Sherry seemed to know exactly what she was doing.

“I’ll stay,” Sherry whispered against her lips and then stood.

Madison missed her warmth instantly and wanted to pull her back, but Sherry picked up her pillow and took Madison’s hand.

Oh my God, she wants to go to bed! Excitement and nervousness fought for the upper hand as Madison jumped up and pulled Sherry with her to the bedroom.

Sherry refused to think about whether this was going to be a mistake or not. If she’d taken a moment to reflect, she would have probably been shocked by her own reaction.

Nobody but Madison knew whether she had told Sherry the truth. Yet one thing was clear: Madison didn’t want her to go. Sherry didn’t want to leave either. Maybe she would later regret what she was about to do, but just this once she wanted to do something for herself and nobody else.

She wanted Madison. As she had never wanted anybody before. She wanted to feel her, to taste her. Everywhere. It was a strange and overwhelming feeling.

She let go of Madison’s hand and threw her pillow on the bed. When she turned, she saw Madison leaning against the closed bedroom door. At first sight, Madison appeared relaxed and casual in her pose in the dim light from the nightstand. But on closer inspection, she looked tense and appeared to be trembling.

All doubts left her. No matter what happened tomorrow, she wouldn’t regret getting intimate with Madison.

Sherry moved toward Madison like a wild animal stalking its prey. She barely recognized herself, but she felt more like herself than she ever had.

With both hands, she pressed Madison by her shoulders against the door. She took full control of her mouth and everything else. Her hands slid over Madison’s satin pajamas while her tongue explored her mouth hungrily. So good.

Madison tasted of mint and something that was just Madison. It was like an aphrodisiac. “Bed.” Sherry pulled the stumbling Madison behind her. She stopped next to the bed and turned so that she could take Madison’s face into both hands and search her eyes. What she saw there took her breath away. Passion reflected in those wide eyes, but also tenderness and…love?

“Sherry?” Madison asked. Her expression mirrored the insecurity in her voice.

Sherry’s body screamed at her to give up thinking and to focus on feeling and nothing else. But her mind had other plans. She sighed, frustrated that she couldn’t shut off the rational part of her brain and live in the moment for once.

“You’ve changed your mind?” Madison took a step back and stared at the floor. “It’s okay. I understand.”

“No!” Sherry pulled Madison closer. She waited until Madison met her gaze before she said, “I know how difficult it is for you to talk about your feelings. But please give me an honest answer.” She swallowed. “What do you feel for me?”

Madison looked around the room as if searching for the answer. When she focused on Sherry again, her expression reminded her of a puppy that had done something wrong. “I…” The tips of her fingers caressed Sherry’s cheeks in the gentlest touch. “I’m not sure if I can. Tell you, I mean. But I would like to try showing you.”

The vulnerability in her voice and eyes made Sherry’s resolve crumble. “Show me what you feel for me.”

Madison wrapped her arms around Sherry and let her lips slide down her neck. Softly, she caressed Sherry’s sensitive skin with her mouth.

Sherry’s breathing hitched, and a fire that started in her neck spread throughout her body and made her skin feel even more sensitive. She had to hold on to Madison so as not to sink to the floor due to her shaky legs.

As if she could feel Sherry’s problem in staying upright, Madison carefully maneuvered her until Sherry fell onto the bed with Madison on top of her.

Instinctively, they moved to the middle of the bed.

When Madison sank fully onto Sherry, it was breathtaking. Madison’s breasts pressed against hers and the rest of their bodies seemed to fit perfectly together.

To give Madison more room, Sherry spread her legs, but she hadn’t been prepared for the sensation of Madison pushing against her center. “Oh!”

The clothes separating them were unbearable. “Off. Let’s… The clothes, let’s get rid of them.” Only this goal existed.

A small smile flickered across Madison’s lips, but surprisingly, it was anything but cocky or arrogant. She sat astride Sherry and stripped off her top without unbuttoning it first. With careless abandon, she threw it beside the bed.

Sherry’s gaze landed on Madison’s breasts. They were bigger than Sherry’s, and the nipples were a little bit paler. Her fingers itched to touch Madison’s breasts, but a wave of uncertainty stopped her. She had never paid her own breasts much attention, let alone that of another woman. What if she were clumsy or—

“That has to be strange for you,” Madison said softly. “Should I cover them again?”

“No!” That was the last thing she wanted. Before she could become consumed by her racing thoughts, she took both of Madison’s breasts into her hands. They were surprisingly heavy, and when she caressed Madison’s nipples with her thumbs, they hardened instantly. Carefully, she took Madison’s breasts more fully in her hands and started to massage them. God, it was so erotic. Her hands weren’t big enough to hold Madison’s breasts completely, but the softness under her fingers took her breath away.

“Ah, harder.” Madison’s eyes fell shut, and she leaned in to the touch. “Yeah, just like that.”

Totally aroused from holding Madison’s breasts and seeing her reaction, Sherry sat up and kissed Madison passionately. Her whole body seemed to burn with desire.

When they finally came up for air, Madison whispered against her lips, “You’re wearing too much.”

Sherry grinned. “Is that so?”

“Mm-hmm.”

Not allowing herself to overthink it, Sherry pushed Madison gently to the side and stripped completely before crawling back into the middle of the bed. She pointed to Madison’s pajama pants. “Now you’re the one who’s overdressed.”

Madison didn’t move but stared at Sherry’s naked form. “God, you’re so beautiful.” Her eyes left no doubt that she meant every word.

The intensity of Madison’s gaze threatened to overwhelm her. But then Madison placed a finger to Sherry’s forehead and caressed her face as if she were the most treasured thing in the world.

She loves me. Sherry tried to blink away the tears forming in her eyes to no avail. No. That’s impossible! But even if it was just an illusion, tonight she would dive into it. Being close to Madison was all that mattered right now. She had to clear her throat. “Thank you.”

Madison smiled in a shy way. Then, as if becoming aware she was still half-dressed, she peeled out of her pajama pants.

Sherry’s gaze took in Madison’s naked body, her right hand following its path. It should have felt strange to touch Madison like that. After all, she barely had any sexual experience, and certainly none with a woman. But to feel Madison under her fingertips seemed to be the most natural thing in the world. It feels so right.

“You’re looking so serious,” Madison said. There was insecurity in her voice.

Sherry smiled and gazed into Madison’s captivating eyes. “I want you.”

Madison lowered herself on top of her, and Sherry sucked in a breath when their naked bodies touched for the first time. The feel of her breasts pressing into Madison’s and the way Madison’s trimmed pubic hair moved against hers was beyond anything she had ever experienced. Her whole body trembled, and for a moment, their intimacy overwhelmed her.

“Sherry, I…” Madison’s voice broke. “I…I don’t want to have sex with you.”

“W—?”

“I want to make love with you. For the first time in my life.”

Sherry’s eyes burned. “Me too,” she whispered before their lips met. It was a slow and deep kiss, repeating what they had just said without words.

Sherry felt every place where their bodies touched. A pleasant throbbing between her legs was becoming more insistent with each beat of her heart. It was intoxicating.

When their long, unhurried kiss ended, Madison started to rain down kisses on her as if she wanted to worship every single spot on her body. She kissed Sherry’s forehead, her eyelids—which fell shut on their own—her temple, her checks, her chin, and her nose. Madison left nothing out.

Her whole body tingled, and a wave of affection coursed through her for a woman who not long ago had been a stranger to her. Never had Sherry felt so loved.

Madison’s mouth moved once more to Sherry’s neck, kissing, licking, and sucking on it.

Sherry was struggling to control her own breathing. A pleasant shiver ran down her arms and back, and she pulled Madison closer with both hands.

“You, I only want you,” Madison whispered in her ear and started nibbling on her earlobe.

A moan was all Sherry was capable of. Not even in her wildest dreams had she thought that it could be like this. Sherry’s hands slid down Madison’s back until she squeezed both of her butt cheeks. She couldn’t get Madison close enough.

Madison groaned. “God, Sherry, you’re driving me crazy.”

Sherry managed a shaky grin. “Does that mean you want me to stop?”

Their eyes met when Madison moved back a little. “Don’t you dare.”

Sherry laughed and squeezed Madison’s behind a second time.

Madison chuckled too before she bent down again to kiss Sherry passionately.

Sherry felt dizzy, but she didn’t care. Being so close to Madison, feeling the love in her touches—even if it later might turn out to be an illusion—was making her forget everything else.

When Madison moved slightly to the side, Sherry was about to complain. But then she felt Madison’s hand caressing her collarbone and her eyes fell shut.

Much too slowly, Madison’s hands trailed down between her breasts, and her lips followed every movement. Featherlight kisses covered every inch of Sherry’s skin that Madison could reach.

Sherry couldn’t wait any longer. She grabbed Madison’s head and pulled her face down to one of her breasts.

With her tongue, Madison encircled Sherry’s nipple at an almost painfully slow pace.

It became harder to breathe. Sherry’s whole body was vibrating. “Madison,” she panted.

Madison took her nipple between her lips and started sucking.

“Holy—!” All of Sherry’s nerves seemed to start and end in her nipple. Instinctively, she pulled Madison’s head even closer. “Madison, please!” She had no idea what she was asking for, but that didn’t make her begging any less urgent.

One of Madison’s hands moved down to caress her belly.

When Madison’s mouth let go of her nipple, she was about to complain, but then Madison switched to her other breast and all protest died on her lips.

While one of Sherry’s hands still urged Madison on to make love to her breasts, her other hand moved away from Madison’s behind to encounter the soft skin of her back.

Madison caressed her belly, and her warm fingers slowly moved south. Her movement halted before touching Sherry’s pubic hair, though. When she looked up at her with a questioning gaze, Sherry’s nipple fell out of her mouth.

“God, don’t stop.” Sherry moaned. “Please.” She’d never begged in her life—especially not when having sex. But all she could think of right now was Madison touching her. And she couldn’t get enough of it.

Madison began caressing the outside of Sherry’s spread legs instead of touching her center, as Sherry had expected. At the same time, she continued to kiss Sherry’s breasts and belly.

Sherry writhed below her and spread her legs even more. “Touch me,” she breathed.

When Madison’s fingertips kept sliding against her inner thighs, as if she had all the time in the world, Sherry couldn’t take it anymore. She grabbed Madison’s hand and pressed it to her core.

Both gasped.

When Madison stared at her with huge eyes, Sherry thought she’d lose her mind. It felt as if every cell in her body was energized and she would explode if Madison didn’t start to move her hand to relieve this building pressure. “Madison!”

Madison blinked, and Sherry needed a few seconds to recognize the expression shinning in her eyes as awe or maybe adoration.

Finally, Madison nodded. Her finger found Sherry’s clit, and she started to stroke Sherry in a slow rhythm.

Sherry’s head fell back, and she couldn’t keep her eyes open any longer. “God!”

Pleasure pulsed through the lower half of her body, and nothing seemed to exist but Madison’s touch. Madison increased the speed, and Sherry clung to Madison’s back with both hands.

“M-may I enter you?”

Sherry’s mind refused to work, so it took her a few heartbeats until she understood what Madison was asking. As soon as she did, she groaned. “God, yes.”

A whimper left her mouth when Madison’s finger stopped touching her clit.

Madison entered her with one, then two fingers, while she continued to rub her clit with her thumb. Faster and faster, her fingers slid in and out of Sherry.

Sherry met every thrust of Madison’s hand, feeling her strong fingers going deeper. She couldn’t get enough air into her lungs, but she didn’t care. Just Madison, her closeness, and her touch mattered. “Faster, deeper.”

Madison pumped into Sherry again and again and again.

A fire that had started between Sherry’s legs spread out all over her body, and an uncontrollable shaking started. “Don’t stop,” she panted. “Never stop.”

Madison’s fast and even strokes propelled Sherry higher and higher until her orgasm crashed over her like a wave and her body stilled.

Madison only stopped once Sherry was incapable of holding on to her anymore. When she finally halted her movements, she kept her fingers buried deep inside of Sherry. As if Sherry was the most precious thing in the world, Madison again rained down kisses on every inch of her face. Only then did she very carefully withdraw her fingers.

A gentle warmth spread through Sherry’s body. She was overwhelmed beyond words.

When their gazes met, Madison said with a trembling voice, “I love you, Sherry.”

Sherry couldn’t believe her ears. She hadn’t expected Madison to utter those words to her. Ever. She had never allowed herself to indulge in wishful thinking, but right now she wanted to—no, she had to—believe Madison’s words.

She pulled Madison closer until she was lying on top of her. With a shuddering breath, the truth escaped her lips: “I love you too.” Her eyes fell shut. It felt so damn good to finally admit it. At the same time, she couldn’t grasp how it had happened. She had fallen in love with Madison, a woman.

Madison buried her face between Sherry’s neck and her collarbone. “Really?” she asked quietly, her voice so insecure that Sherry couldn’t resist tenderly stroking her hair.

Her vocal chords refused to work; all she could do was nod.

They lay in silence, holding on to each other, and occasionally caressing the skin they could reach without moving. Eventually, their heartbeats and breathing slowed down, and Sherry totally relaxed into Maddison’s touch.

“I had no idea,” Sherry said after a while, her voice hoarse.

“Mm-hmm?”

“That it could be like that.”

Madison raised her head to look at her. “What do you mean?”

Sherry opened her mouth, but it took a few moments to say, “Unbelievable. Madison, that was…wow.”

Madison blushed and started giggling. “Tell me whenever you want more.”

Even though she was totally exhausted, she pushed Madison onto her back and leaned over her. “Now would be a good time. But this time it’s my turn.” Her face now serious, she added, “Let me love you.”

Madison tensed and closed her eyes. “Don’t you want me to touch you again instead?”

Sherry took Madison’s chin between her thumb and forefinger. “Madison, what’s wrong? Please look at me.”

Slowly, Madison opened her eyes. “I…I don’t do that.”

“What don’t you do?”

“I’ve never…” Madison bit her lip. “I’m the active one, you know?”

Sherry’s hand slid from her chin. “I’m not sure. Are you saying you don’t want me to touch you?” Surely Madison had enjoyed Sherry touching her breasts. When Madison remained silent, Sherry asked, “Why don’t you let anyone…you know?”

Madison shrugged. “The first women I slept with didn’t seem interested in touching me, and when one woman eventually wanted to, it seemed weird or…I don’t know, wrong.”

Sherry leaned her head on her hand. She didn’t like not being able to give Madison the same pleasure she had just experienced. “Maybe we could give it a try. Maybe you’d like it.”

Madison swallowed. She appeared so vulnerable that Sherry would have liked to hold her in her arms forever. “I don’t know.”

With one finger, Sherry caressed Madison’s neck, then between her breasts, and eventually her belly. “You’ve got no idea how much I want to touch you.”

Hesitantly, Madison looked up. “I don’t know if I can come this way.”

“Only one way to find out,” Sherry said before kissing Madison passionately. When they came up for air, she made sure to catch Madison’s eye. “You can tell me to stop at any time. I want to show you my feelings as you’ve shown me yours. So please tell me if there’s something you don’t like.”

Madison took a deep breath and nodded. When their lips met in a kiss, their eyes fell shut.

Madison trembled like a virgin about to have sex for the first time. And somehow that’s exactly what it was. No, it wasn’t just sex: Sherry was about to make love to her. She really loves me. A lump in her throat made her swallow. I trust her. She was aroused as much as terrified of the idea to being touched intimately by Sherry.

“I can’t wait to touch you,” Sherry whispered in her ear. She took one of Madison’s breasts in her hand and massaged it gently.

Madison’s head fell back onto her pillow, and she groaned. “God, that feels good.”

“Yeah, it does,” Sherry said hoarsely.

Looking up again, she couldn’t believe how dark Sherry’s eyes had become. When Sherry wet her lips with the tip of her sexy tongue, all of Madison’s bodily fluids moved south, leaving her mouth completely dry.

She was nervous, but right now she would have said yes to anything Sherry asked her to do. But Sherry hadn’t demanded anything from her, so Madison took the initiative.

“Kiss me.” She pulled Sherry closer to kiss her passionately.

Sherry’s hand on her breast stopped massaging as it was trapped between them. But then Sherry interrupted the kiss, dipped her head, and took one of Madison’s nipples into her mouth.

“Ahh!” A surge went from Madison’s nipple straight to her core.

Sherry’s tongue stroked across her nipple, and Madison started panting.

“Harder,” was all she could get out, followed by a moan when Sherry did just that.

Her nipple and clitoris throbbed in the same fast rhythm. Instinctively, she held Sherry’s head in place to prolong her pleasure and also because she needed the contact.

But much too soon, Sherry let go of her rock-hard nipple. She moved a little more to the side and began caressing Madison’s belly, an almost serene smile playing around her lips.

She really likes touching me. It was hard to grasp that Sherry obviously took pleasure in touching her.

Of course she knew the good feeling of exploring a woman’s body. It was exciting and powerful. Her eyes widened. Was that why she never had wanted to be touched? Had she been afraid to give up control?

Sherry moved up and down her upper body. She nipped and licked every inch from Madison’s neck to just above the curls between her thighs.

The tenderness in Sherry’s touch and gaze was almost too much to bear. It was so full of love and had nothing to do with control or power. It’s all about her love for me. A trembling smile formed on her lips, and she caressed Sherry’s soft hair, sprawled all over Madison’s torso like a protective blanket of love.

Sherry moved up until their noses almost touched. A question shone in her bright eyes.

She took Sherry’s face in her hands. “What is it?”

“You’re crying,” Sherry said. “I…I’m sorry. I’ll stop.”

“No!” She shook her head vigorously. “No, please don’t.”

Sherry didn’t move.

She caressed one of Sherry’s cheeks with her thumb. “I can’t tell you how happy I am that it’s you touching me this way for the first time.” She let go of Sherry’s face and took one of her hands to kiss every single knuckle. All the while, they gazed deeply into each other’s eyes. This contact was more intimate than anything physical could ever be.

Their foreheads touched when Sherry leaned forward, a content sigh on her lips. After a few moments of breathing the same air, Sherry wiped away a few tears from Madison’s cheeks and leaned back with a tender smile on her beautiful lips.

As before, Sherry trailed kisses down Madison’s body, sometimes causing pleasant shivers in her wake, especially when she inhaled deeply as if she couldn’t get enough of the smell of Madison’s skin.

Madison caressed Sherry’s silk-like back.

“So soft,” Sherry whispered, echoing Madison’s thoughts from earlier. With her fingertips, Sherry caressed her hips and her upper thighs in a slow exploration. With each caress, she ventured further toward her inner thighs, Madison spread her leg instinctively.

Sherry looked up at her while oh-so slowly moving her fingers upward.

Madison’s pulse quickened.

As if by accident, Sherry’s fingers grazed her very sensitive folds.

Madison sucked in a breath. The fleeting touch had shot a bolt of pleasure through her core and her entire body.

But instead of continuing her exploration there, Sherry went back to caressing Madison’s inner thighs, her pelvis, and her trimmed curls. Not even once did Sherry break eye contact. Was she making sure that Madison was enjoying her touches?

Sherry slid slowly downward, causing an incredibly pleasant friction between their warm bodies in the process. Then she took a deep breath as if inhaling Madison’s intimate scent and gave Madison’s dark curls a kiss.

Madison tensed. If Sherry really wanted to do what she suspected, she wasn’t sure she was ready for that.

As if reading her mind, Sherry moved up again to rain soft kisses all over her face before deeply kissing Madison on the lips. When they came up for air, Sherry asked, “What do you want me to do?”

Madison opened her mouth, but nothing came out.

Sherry’s hand absently circled over the overheated skin of Madison’s belly and then returned to her curls. “Can I touch you more…down?”

“Yeah.” Her voice was trembling. It was ridiculous. She had slept with countless women, and Sherry didn’t have even a fraction of her experience, not to mention that she’d never been with a woman. And yet it’s me who feels like the inexperienced one. And in a way, she was.

All thoughts left her when Sherry’s hand trailed lower to her folds, finding her clit and rubbing it with two fingers at an almost painfully leisurely pace.

Her breath caught.

Slowly, so very slowly, Sherry moved her fingers between her wet folds.

Madison started panting.

The pace increased bit by bit.

“Yeah…yeah…” Madison gasped. Her body was aflame with desire so much that her eyes fell shut.

“Look at me,” Sherry whispered, her breath ragged as well.

Madison tore her eyes open to gaze into Sherry’s dark eyes, full of passion and love.

Sherry increased the pace of her motions, and it took all her self-control not to succumb to the urge to close her eyes again. It felt so incredibly good, but she couldn’t let go.

“Come for me,” Sherry said in a raspy voice.

It was as if her body had just been waiting for Sherry’s words, because her body exploded like a huge firework. A silent cry left her mouth, and she slumped back against the sheets that she had mussed in the heat of passion.

As hard as she tried, she couldn’t keep her eyes open any longer. She shuddered when Sherry slowly withdrew her fingers from between her legs. Madison sighed when Sherry pulled her to the side and wrapped her arms around her, so that her head could lie on Sherry’s shoulder. It was as if she was in a cocoon, a safe place where nothing bad could reach her. She hugged Sherry back and snuggled deep into her embrace even though she was totally spent. “I love you so much, Sherry.”

Sherry gave her a featherlight kiss on the forehead. “I love you too.”

While they held each other tight, Madison drifted off to sleep.

Chapter 34

A slow, rhythmic movement edged its way into Madison’s consciousness. The gentle up-and-down was relaxing, and an intense feeling of peace and security swept over her right before she became aware of the soft skin touching hers. Last night came back to her, and a huge smile lit up her face.

When she opened her eyes and marveled at the sleeping Sherry, lying sprawled on top of her, breathing in and out, deep and even, a wave of affection washed over her.

They were both still naked, and the sheets lay beside the bed on the floor. But she wasn’t cold at all. How could she be with Sherry covering her as much as her small body allowed? It was as if even in her sleep, Sherry couldn’t get enough of her.

Almost bursting with happiness, she caressed Sherry’s tousled hair. Madison couldn’t wait to look into her beautiful face again. She loves me.

She had never imagined that Sherry could love her back. But last night had left no doubt about it. Or had it? How could you be sure that somebody really loved you? God, it was all so confusing. What would happen now?

Never had she woken up beside someone she loved. How was she supposed to act?

Sherry smacked her lips, yawned, and began to stretch, but suddenly she froze. Her eyes snapped open to stare at Madison.

She stiffened. What if Sherry had just been curious about what it would feel like to sleep with a woman? What if she had repeated Madison’s words of love only so she wouldn’t ruin the mood, not because she felt the same? What if—?

Sherry climbed off Madison’s naked body.

The rubbing of their bodies against each other as she moved caused a tingle everywhere, but all Madison could focus on was Sherry’s unreadable expression.

Sherry grabbed the sheets from the floor and pulled them up to her chin.

Not sure what to do with her hands, Madison used them to grab her pillow and turned it so that she could rest her head on it while watching Sherry. Every cell in her body felt as if it was on high alert. She swallowed and forced a smile. “Good morning.”

Silence spread between them, and Madison avoided looking at her, afraid of what she might see in Sherry’s eyes.

Images of their shared passion coursed through Sherry like a firestorm and robbed her of breath. Or maybe it was Madison’s incredibly sexy body lying in all its glory next to her. Madison didn’t seem conscious of her nakedness at all. Or maybe she was. That would have explained her tense posture and her lack of eye contact.

Was Madison waiting for her to leave the bed? In the light of day, Madison probably regretted what she had said last night. Had she said those words just to relax her or maybe make her more willing to have sex with her? “I, um, I should take a shower.” But when she began to rise and lower the sheets, her naked breasts and the rest of the body about to be revealed in the full light of day, her cheeks suddenly burned.

Madison looked at her again but seemed to focus on Sherry’s face instead of her breasts.

Of course. She’s used to much more attractive women in her bed. With a huge lump in her throat, she rolled away from Madison, threw back the sheets, and stood.

“Wait!”

Sherry looked over her shoulder but couldn’t force out even one word.

Madison rolled out of bed in one smooth motion, jumped up, and came to a halt beside Sherry.

It was childish to hide her body from Madison. But still it took all her willpower to turn and face her.

Both completely naked, they stood in front of each other.

Sherry crossed her arms in front of her chest but then let her arms fall to her sides. This was ridiculous. Madison was still looking at just her face. She didn’t care about her body at all. The thought hurt.

They gazed into each other’s eyes, and time seemed to stand still.

Then Madison raised a hand as if to touch her shoulder but withdrew before making contact and balled her hand into a fist.

“What is it?” Sherry whispered. Somehow, she seemed incapable of speaking louder. God, she was so terrified of the answer.

Shakily, Madison said, “I meant every word I said last night.”

Sherry tilted her head. Huh? Then it hit her. She’s afraid and thinks I might have changed my mind. The realization sucked the air out of her lungs and made her legs wobbly. She really loves me! Beaming, she took Madison’s fist between her hands, loosened her fingers, and placed a kiss on each of her knuckles while keeping eye contact.

The expression of surprise on Madison’s face gave way to something like awe or maybe incredulity.

“I really love you, Madison Fielding. That hasn’t changed.” It was crazy. Twenty-four hours ago, she hadn’t even been aware of her feelings, but now there wasn’t a shadow of a doubt about it.

Madison pulled her close with shaking hands, and their naked bodies touched all along their lengths.

It was intoxicating, and her heart pumped wildly in her chest at the contact.

Slowly, Madison pulled back, holding her gently by the shoulders. “You must think me insane, but I can’t imagine how I could ever live without you.”

Sherry almost melted at Madison’s words, and a pulsing between her legs made itself known. Before she could give in to her emotions, and her body’s demands, she had to ask about the one thing that was still capable of keeping them apart. “What about the inheritance?”

Madison tensed for a moment before relaxing again. “I’ll talk to my grandmother. Even before I realized that…that I love you, I told her that you’re not negotiable.”

“But what if she decides to disinherit you?”

“I don’t think she will. After all, she still believes that I’ve changed.”

Sherry couldn’t resist any longer and placed a soft kiss on Madison’s collarbone. “You have changed.”

Madison smiled. “I have, and it’s all because of you.” Her eyes shimmered with a myriad of emotions. It almost seemed as if Madison was overwhelmed by the realization that she was with Sherry now and couldn’t believe it was true. She cleared her throat. “What happens next is up to her. And if she doesn’t accept you in my life, it’s her loss.”

“But you would lose everything if she—”

“Wrong! I have you. And Jake and Rita Mae. And this apartment.” She shrugged. “Besides, the Archer is half mine. My grandmother can’t take that away from me.” She leaned forward and whispered, “I like working at the Archer better than at Fielding Inc. anyway. I hate all the paperwork that goes with working at the office.”

It was hard to resist kissing those tempting lips again, but then Madison’s words registered. Stunned, she looked at Madison and smiled.

When Madison smiled back, she couldn’t restrain herself any longer and leaned forward to give Madison a long, deep kiss. When they both came up for air, she said, “Let’s take a shower.”

Madison raised an eyebrow. “Together?”

Sherry winked.

Madison let go of Sherry’s shoulder and grabbed one of her hands instead, dragging her toward the bathroom. “Let’s go.”

About an hour later, they left the bedroom hand in hand.

Even if Sherry had wanted to, she wouldn’t have been able to hide her giddiness. The time they had just spent together in the shower had been a revelation. She suppressed a sigh at that thought. Yes, Madison had displayed an impressing amount of flexibility and creativity, evoking the most pleasurable sensations in Sherry’s body. But it had been Madison’s loving gaze and her whispered declarations of love that had settled deep inside of her, causing a happiness that she’d never thought possible for herself.

“Someone looks mighty happy,” Madison whispered in her ear.

Sherry giggled. Partly because Madison’s breath was tickling her ear but mostly because of her words. They reached the unoccupied but set breakfast table. “Shh,” she whispered back, but try as she might, she couldn’t stop grinning.

“Oh, good morning,” Rita Mae straightened from behind the kitchen counter and smiled. “Happy New Year.”

“Happy New Year,” she and Madison said in unison, then snickered at each other.

Rita Mae padded out of the kitchen and placed a basket of bread on the breakfast table. When she turned around, she tilted her head as if unsure what to make of their behavior.

The silence, and Rita Mae’s piercing look, suddenly became uncomfortable. “Um, where’s Jake?”

Rita Mae sat down at the table. “Your offspring is currently dealing with urgent business. Not for the first time today, and for sure not the last after last night.”

“Why?” Madison took a seat as well. “What happened last night?”

Sherry sat down next to her and couldn’t resist winking at Madison.

Madison’s cheeks turned the deepest shade of red Sherry had ever seen on her. It was so cute. Who would have thought Madison could blush at the thought of sex? No, not sex. Making love.

A frown creased Rita Mae’s forehead.

Sherry couldn’t believe it. She was behaving like a schoolgirl in love.

“Nothing serious,” Rita Mae said eventually. “Just a stomachache. I, um, might have allowed him to eat too much ice cream. I’m sorry.”

Sherry placed a comforting hand on Rita Mae’s shoulder. “Don’t worry. Been there, done that. It’s sometimes hard to say no to him, and when he gets started, he can eat faster than you can look.” She stood again. “I’d better check on him.”

When she reached the bathroom door, she asked, “Are you okay, baby?”

“My belly hurts,” Jake mumbled through the door.

“Shall I come in?”

“No! I’m too old to poop in front of my mom.”

She chuckled. “Fine. But shout if you need me.”

“Thanks, Mom.”

On her way back to the table, it hit her like a baseball bat. They had to tell Rita Mae that she and Madison were… What exactly were they?

“You’re what?” Rita Mae asked with a screeching voice that Sherry had never heard her use before.

She quickened her pace. “What’s going on here?” she asked when she reached the table and sat down again.

“M-Madison just told me you’re a couple. For real. I mean, not for show.”

Madison avoided her gaze. “I’m sorry. She asked me why we were behaving so strangely this morning, and because you never lie to her, I thought…” Madison shrugged.

A wave of affection for Madison and something that felt like relief flooded her. Madison really saw them as a couple. It shouldn’t have come as a surprise after Madison’s declaration that she and Jake were more important to her than her inheritance. God, she still couldn’t believe this was really happening.

“Sherry?”

Her head snapped in Rita Mae’s direction. “Huh?”

“Is it true? Are you and Madison…?” She whirled with her finger as if imitating a mixer.

“Yeah, we’re together.” She took Madison’s hand, and when she glanced up lost herself for a moment in those beautiful but vulnerable-looking eyes.

Madison’s shy expression gave way to a broad smile before Sherry turned back to Rita Mae. “Are you okay with that?” Once she had asked, she realized how nervous the possible answer made her. Rita Mae was so important to her. What if she couldn’t accept this?

Rita Mae stared at her for half an eternity. “But I thought you were straight.”

Sherry bit her lip when images of their lovemaking flooded her senses. “Trust me, after last night—”

“And this morning,” Madison supplied, not at all helpful.

Sherry’s cheeks burned like fire. “Um, anyway, I’m quite certain that I’m not heterosexual.”

Glancing over revealed a beaming Madison looking like a child who had been given the biggest lollypop in history.

“Happy New Year,” Jake called from the hallway, trudging toward them and hugging first her, then Madison.

“You too, baby.”

“Yeah, grasshopper, Happy New Year to you too.”

When Jake sat down, they started having breakfast like on any other day. Well, besides Rita Mae’s unreadable expression.

Jake barely took a breath between his tales about last evening. He described in every detail the games he and Rita Mae had played and the movie they’d watched.

Rita Mae said nothing.

A lump formed in Sherry’s throat. She had been shocked by her own feelings, so how could she expect Rita Mae to accept their relationship and be happy for her? Rita Mae came from an older generation, and judging from all her questions and comments since Madison had hired Sherry, she might have a problem with them being together.

Jake was still rambling on about the animation movie about ants he had been watching last night, while ignoring the peanut butter and jelly sandwich in his hand.

Madison leaned forward and took a bite of his sandwich.

He stopped talking and stared open-mouthed at her. Then he started giggling. “Hey, that’s mine.”

“Really?” Madison asked. “You were just waving it around, so I thought you weren’t that interested in it.”

Jake held on to his sandwich as if his life depended on it. “But it’s mine.”

“Really?” Madison rubbed her chin in a thoughtful manner. “Mm-hmm, but I’m hungry. Maybe I should find another snack, then.” Madison grabbed one of his arms and started nibbling.

Jake squeaked and laughed. “Mom, help! Madison wants to eat me!”

Sherry laughed. When she saw Mae Rita Mae chuckling as well, she relaxed and laughed even more.

It might take some time for Rita Mae to accept that Sherry loved Madison, but she would probably get used to them being together. In the end, it all would be fine.

Her worry melted almost as fast as the remains of the sandwich in Madison’s mouth after Jake held it up to her to get his arm back.

Madison wiped her damp palms against her pant legs and knocked at the doors of her grandmother’s office.

“Come in.”

Madison straightened and entered.

“Madison? What brought you here? Where’s Tiffany?”

Looking over her shoulder to the empty seat of her grandmother’s assistant, she shrugged. “I don’t know.”

Grandmother Eileen closed a folder in front of her and leaned back in her chair. “Close the door and tell me why you’re here.”

Madison took her time closing the door and walking to the seat in front of her grandmother’s desk. When she sat down, she took a deep breath and let it out again without answering. It wasn’t that she had even the slightest doubt that this was the right thing to do, but she also knew that there was no going back. It all depended on Grandmother Eileen now.

“I’m waiting.”

Madison cleared her throat and forced herself to look deep into Grandmother Eileen’s cold eyes. “I love Sherry.”

Her grandmother shook her head. “That isn’t love. Decency forbids saying out loud what you’re feeling.”

Madison balled her hands into fists. “Just because you’re incapable of love doesn’t mean—”

Grandmother Eileen jumped up with an agility that belied her age. “How dare you?”

This wasn’t going the way she’d planned this. She forced her hands to relax and to tone her voice down. “All I’m saying is that I won’t end things with Sherry.”

“You’re so stubborn, so unreasonable. How could I ever believe that you’d changed?” Grandmother Eileen whirled around and snatched a half-empty bottle of her favorite scotch out of a hidden cabinet Madison saw for the first time. She grabbed a glass and filled it up about two thirds. Not bothering to get ice cubes out of the minibar beside Tiffany’s desk, she took a long swig, almost downing the whole glass in one go. She turned back to Madison and, as if in slow motion, sank back down into her chair, rolling the glass in her hand.

It hit her like a ton of bricks. Grandmother Eileen was a caricature. The caricature of a person her grandmother could be, maybe even should have been but wasn’t because she was unable to see herself for who she really was. Because she has nobody like Sherry.

A part of her knew it was too late to try to talk to Grandmother Eileen like a normal person, but she couldn’t stop herself from trying anyway. “Can I ask you something?”

Grandmother Eileen drained her glass. “Can I stop you?”

It took all her courage to ask, “Do you really think it was my fault that…Mom and Dad died?”

Grandmother Eileen stared at her as if she’d seen a ghost. “Where did that come from?”

Madison leaned back in her chair. Answering a question with a question wasn’t unusual for a Fielding. Actually, it was the modus operandi. But not for me anymore. “I lost everything when they died. Everything. And you made my life a living hell.”

Her grandmother hammered the empty glass on the desk. “You’re ungrateful! I took you in.”

“Ungrateful?” Madison grabbed the armrests of her chair until her knuckles turned white. “Do you have any idea how it was for me to grow up with you?”

“That’s enough. I don’t have to listen to this.”

“Try to image how it was for me. Just for a moment. You told me day in and day out what a disappointment I was to you and that Mom and Dad would still be fine if I hadn’t been born.”

Grandmother Eileen flinched. “What do you want from me? Do you want me to admit that I might have made mistakes? Fine. You think you’re the only one who lost someone?” With every word, her voice was getting louder until she was screaming. She stood and leaned with both hands on her desk. “He was my son!” Tears welled up in her eyes. “He was everything to me.”

“And to me,” Madison whispered. She took a deep breath and forced herself to keep eye contact. “But I was nothing to you.”

“I took care of you, didn’t I?”

“You really believe that, don’t you?”

Grandmother Eileen straightened. “Think of me in whatever way you want, but I took you in. I fed you, I dressed you, and I saw to your education.”

“But you didn’t give me a home!” Madison held her breath, shocked that she had shouted those words.

Grandmother Eileen blinked. Once, twice. Eventually, she lowered her gaze and said in a broken voice Madison had never heard her use before, “I gave you all I could.”

She didn’t know what to say to that. Why had she even started with this, and now of all times?

When the silence between them stretched, Madison stood. “With Sherry and Jake, I have a family and a home. I love them with all my heart.” When Grandmother Eileen looked at her as if she hadn’t understood a word, she added, “Love is important, you know?” She shook her head at her own words. “No. Love is everything.”

Grandmother Eileen stared at her, not moving an inch.

“I know you don’t understand me. Hell, I barely understand it myself. Don’t ask me why I brought all this up now.”

But when they kept gazing at each other, she finally understood. Today was the beginning of her new life. And she was tired of being burdened by her old one, full of painful memories and all this anger. Maybe for the first time, she looked at her grandmother without fear or rage. “I forgive you.”

Not waiting for a reply, she walked to the door and turned. “I don’t care about your money. Not anymore. I quit.” While she walked through Tiffany’s still-empty office, the hall, and eventually out of the building, a smile grew on her face. Who cared if she inherited the Fielding wealth or not? She had more than she could ever have wished for.

Epilogue

“Listen up, everybody!” Sherry called when Madison’s attempts to get the crowd’s attention failed miserably.

Danielle and the others quieted and looked expectantly toward the bar.

Madison nudged Sherry. “Of course everybody listens to you.”

Sherry gave Madison a peck on her lips and stepped aside.

Madison cleared her throat and said as loud as she could without shouting, “Thank you all for coming today.”

“I work here,” Jack joked while drawing a beer. “Where else would I be?”

Laughter filled the Archer.

Madison slapped him with a dishtowel before facing the crowd again. “Um, as I was about to say before I got interrupted, Sherry and I are very glad you could all come today to join us in celebrating our engagement.”

Applause and whistling rang through the place.

“It was about time you made an honest woman of me,” Sherry called before pinching Madison’s behind.

Madison wrapped an arm around Sherry’s waist and pulled her close. “Ever heard the saying ‘marry in haste, repent at leisure’?”

“As if you would have even spared a glance at another woman in the past three years,” Danielle said with Ruth beside her nodding in agreement.

Sherry’s bright eyes gazed lovingly into Madison’s.

“Look at her.” Madison pointed at the love of her life. She couldn’t imagine what would have happened if she hadn’t found the courage to face her feelings for this wonderful woman. “Would you care about another woman if she was by your side?”

“Well…” Ruth mumbled and kissed Danielle.

The crowd surrounding them laughed.

Madison leaned down and whispered into Sherry’s ear, “I love you.”

Sherry gave her another kiss on the lips. Then she moved back from their gentle contact and called, “Sorry, everybody. If I keep interrupting, this speech will never end.”

“Ha ha, very funny.” Madison held up both hands. “There’s not much more to say anyway. Thank you all for coming, and have a good time celebrating with us.”

Standing beside Ruth and Danielle, Sherry watched Madison mingle with some party guests after she had finished her speech. Even after all these years, she couldn’t stop herself from admiring Madison’s sexy behind.

“Mom, can I have a Coke?”

Sherry looked down at Jake. “No, baby, we talked about this. You’re not allowed Coke or coffee before you’re twelve.”

“But Madison said I could have a glass.”

“Did she, now?” She was pretty sure Madison hadn’t said that. “Shall I ask her?”

Jake rubbed his neck instead of answering.

Madison had turned out to be a wonderful second parent to Jake, and both Sherry and Rita Mae trusted her unconditionally. They didn’t always agree on everything, but they both tried not to spoil Jake too much. That’s why she didn’t need to see Jake’s reaction now to know that her son had yet again tried to play Madison and her against each other. She folded her arms in front of her chest. “What exactly did Madison say?”

Jake mumbled something unintelligible.

“Speak up, please.”

His shoulders slumped. “She said I could have a glass of Coke if you agreed.”

Sherry had to bite her lip not to laugh out loud. “We’ll talk about this when we get home.” Less stern, she asked, “Where’s Rita Mae?”

Jake sighed and pointed to a group of people. “She’s talking about the wedding arrangements. So boring.”

Uh-oh. Who knew what they were planning behind her back? She faced Danielle and Ruth. “Excuse me, please. I have to prevent a disaster.”

Danielle held her beer up. “No problem. Good luck.”

Madison let her gaze roam through the Archer. Most of their guests today were new friends they’d made over the last two or three years. Her old friendships with Phil and the other guys seemed to be from a different life.

Over the course of the last few years, Phil had contacted her just twice. In both cases, it was to ask her for money. But since Grandmother Eileen had disinherited her for good, the Archer was her only income. The quarter-million dollars she had left in her savings were solely for Sherry’s studies and Jake’s education. Not a penny would go to financing Phil’s party life.

At least she knew now that Phil had never really cared about her but only about her money. She shook her head to get rid of these gloomy thoughts when Janice walked up to her. “Hey, Janice. I’m so glad that you could make it.” She engulfed her friend in a hug. “How’s Robert? Did he come too?”

“Congratulations on your engagement. I’m so glad for you two.”

“Thanks.” Madison smiled when she saw Sherry in a heated discussion with Rita Mae, Lillian, and Bill. What were they talking about so animatedly?

“To answer your question, our babysitter called in sick at the last minute, so Robert had to take over.”

“Oh, I’m sorry.”

“Don’t be. Robert’s been working overtime a lot within the last months, so a little more father-son time is exactly what they both need.”

She hummed in agreement. “Since Sherry moved from the community college to the University, I spend more time with Jake.”

Sherry’s laughter made Madison whirl around. Bill had obviously told her something funny, and Sherry radiated happiness out of every pore.

Madison smiled.

“…yet?”

Madison blinked and turned back to Janice. “Um, what was that?”

Janice smirked. “Love looks good on you.” Before Madison could confirm to her that it did indeed feel damn good, Janice repeated her question. “Has Sherry decided on her major yet?”

“Yeah, she has. Psychology.”

“Really?”

Madison nodded. “I would run screaming, but she loves it, so I’m happy to support her.”

Janice smiled and sipped on her cocktail. “A few days back, I remembered our bet. You know which one?”

“Of course. We never decided who the winner was.” She hesitated. “I mean, you’re right. My plan didn’t work after all.”

“I wouldn’t say that. You were convincing enough to get a job at your grandmother’s firm. And if you had gone separate ways with Sherry back then—”

Again Madison’s gaze wandered to Sherry. “Then I would have become like my grandmother.” She shook her head. “I don’t regret anything.”

“I can see that,” Janice said. “Sherry is the best thing that’s ever happened to you.”

Madison nodded. “That she is.” No matter how much time passed, she would never forget how lucky she’d been to find her. This could have ended up totally differently. The thought made her shudder and brought her back to their stupid bet. “You know, it was a dumb bet to begin with. Nowadays, I would never play with anybody’s life like that.” She held up both hands. “And that is not an attempt of trying to get out of our bet. If you want, I can—”

“You’re right. It was pretty dumb. Let’s call it a truce. The story has a happy ending after all, and that’s what matters.”

“Happy ending? Sounds good, but—”

“But what?”

Madison looked at Sherry again. The love she felt for this wonderful woman was becoming stronger every day. Even after three years, Sherry still took her breath away. Smiling, she turned to Janice and said, “I have a feeling we’re just getting started.”

About Alison Grey

Alison has been writing since the age of ten. Her first works were poems and short stories; then she wrote her first novel-length book when she was eleven. It was a Star Trek: The Next Generation fanfiction.

In addition to writing, Alison likes spending her spare time with her friends. The vegetarian also loves cooking and baking. If she’s got enough time, she reads books about history and about social and political sciences.

Other Books from Ylva Publishing

www.ylva-publishing.com

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Length: 27,000 words (114 pages)

Two women from different worlds.

Linda, a successful psychologist, uses her work to distance herself from her own loneliness.

Christina works for a sex hotline to make ends meet.

Their worlds collide when Linda calls Christina’s sex line. Christina quickly realizes Linda is not her usual customer. Instead of wanting phone sex, Linda makes an unexpected proposition. Does Christina dare accept the offer that will change both their lives?

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So Claire sets out to hire herself a fake fiancée.

Lana Henderson, the actress who shows up to audition for the role, is not exactly Claire’s ideal woman. Her frankness and the messes she leaves everywhere drive Claire up the wall. At least she won’t fall in love with someone like Lana.

But soon, Lana starts to win her over with her big heart, tickle fights, and—gasp!—carbs after six. The longer they pretend to be a love-struck couple, the less fake their kisses feel and the more the lines between reality and role begin to blur.

Once the book contract is signed, will they walk away or is their relationship no longer just for show?

A lesbian romance where role-playing has never been so irresistible.

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Of course, it’s a terrible idea. And it would mean leaving the New York nightlife behind and spending Christmas with Michelle’s family in Ohio – an overly accepting father, a pill-popping brother, and a suspicious sister who seems to have her own agenda with Elizabeth. Worst of all, it’ll mean facing up to some old feelings she’d rather not revisit. But, really, she can handle all that. How hard can it be?

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Who’d Have Thought

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ISBN: 978-3-95533-875-6 (mobi), 978-3-95533-876-3 (epub)

Length: 129,000 words (339 pages)

Top neurosurgeon Samantha Thomson needs to get married fast and is tightlipped as to why. And with over $200,000 on offer to tie the knot, no questions asked, cash-strapped ER nurse Hayden Pérez isn’t about to demand answers.

The deal is only for a year of marriage, but Hayden’s going into it knowing it will be a nightmare. Sam is complicated, rude, kind of cold, and someone Hayden barely tolerates at work, let alone wants to marry. The hardest part is that Hayden has to convince everyone around them that they’re madly in love and that racing down the aisle together is all they’ve ever wanted. What could possibly go wrong?

Contract for Love

© 2018 by Alison Grey

ISBN (mobi): 978-3-96324-063-8

ISBN (epub): 978-3-96324-064-5

Also available as paperback.

Published by Ylva Publishing, legal entity of Ylva Verlag, e.Kfr.

Ylva Verlag, e.Kfr.

Owner: Astrid Ohletz

Am Kirschgarten 2

65830 Kriftel

Germany

www.ylva-publishing.com

First edition: 2018

First published in German 2015 under the title Liebe im Trinkgeld inbegriffen by Ylva Verlag, e.Kfr.

No part of this book may be reproduced, scanned, or distributed in any printed or electronic form without permission. Please do not participate in or encourage piracy of copyrighted materials in violation of the author’s rights. Thank you for respecting the hard work of this author.

This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents either are a product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously, and any resemblance to locales, events, business establishments, or actual persons—living or dead—is entirely coincidental.

Credits

Edited by Amanda Jean

Proofread by Alex K. Thorne

Cover Design and Print Layout by Streetlight Graphics